A Real McCoy
by BlueForestAngelCat
Summary: Let's take a little walk with Sarah McCoy, an obnoxiously punnerific Mary-Sue who performs with all the charm an insane meddlesome meddler can possess, as she dives headfirst into a sea of magical super-hero shenanigans, and shows everyone that crazy ideas have crazier results...for better or worse. (There will eventually be a sequel. Also on AO3.)
1. The Story Has To Start Somewhere

In which Hawkmoth makes everything ridiculously complicated, and is ALWAYS to blame for everything wrong with life (except for Chloe, obviously).

And in which Chloe can apparently find new ways of wrecking lives, and trying to stop her might make it worse. Much, much worse.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Miraculous related...other than a silly mask I made and then broke the string off of-anyway! This story was all for fun originally, then it spun out of control and started ruining my life. I lost so much sleep over the past year because the ideas would not stop tormenting me. It might be in your best interest to AVOID READING THIS MONSTROSITY, but, well, feedback would be nice, lol! (Please don't kill me for the Mary-Sue/wish-fulfillment character, I literally could not stop it from happening. Don't judge me.)

Also to be found on Archive Of Our Own under the same name.

* * *

Chapter 1: The Story Has To Start Somewhere

Sarah McCoy had been observing her new classmates for nearly three weeks. It wasn't hard, considering she was seated next to Nathaniel in the back of the classroom.

After a quick introduction on the first day, interest in her existence had easily faded away (partially in thanks to all the Akuma activity, and to a certain Italian girl who had recently transferred in, and then right back out of their school). She had quietly accepted her small niche with the kids at the back of the room: two comfortably subdued people that didn't question her, and a sweet, peppy little fairy of a girl that could hold a conversation for two on her own easily.

Everyone else faced forward. They didn't see her, but she could see them. It was a perfectly ideal situation for her, except now she had a problem. Well, _two_ problems, to be exact. And it was _really_ stressing her out.

It all stemmed from a bad habit of hers...she was too observant. She analyzed people just a little too passionately, as if to fill the void she believed she was. Others were always _so much more_ _interesting_ than her own dull self, and figuring them out to the point she could predict their actions always seemed to be her goal. She wasn't exactly great at it, but she sure enjoyed trying.

So after only three weeks, she knew a few interesting things about each classmate.

Nathaniel apparently shipped his alter-ego with Ladybug, and Chat Noir with Marinette, if his many, many sketches were any indicator. (She tried not to cringe whenever she happened to see them.)

Juleka wrote some really, really cool poetry...not that she showed it to many people.

Rose's bag often had glitter spilling out of it, and she smelled like an explosion of flowers.

Alix really liked snakes, and apparently had a Siamese cat named Viper at home.

Mylene was terrified of a lot of things, yet she could boldly kiss her boyfriend in public, no problem. Apparently "stage-fright" wasn't part of her vocabulary, even if both words separate could easily be identified with her.

Said boyfriend, Ivan, had an intimidating appearance for several reasons, yet he was probably one of the sweetest softies in the class. Not that he would go out of his way to show it, but the boy would literally tear up while watching kitten videos. Mylene had caught a good one.

Kim was one of the biggest sports nerds she had ever seen. Just, wow.

Max was pretty much exactly what he appeared to be. He didn't pretend to be anything else, even though he was certainly smart enough to fool people if he'd wanted to. Cool guy.

Sabrina was obsessed with spy novels, and had a new book in her bag almost every day. One had to wonder how she managed the time though, considering she dedicated herself to maintaining high grades not only for herself, but for her best friend too.

Said best friend, Chloe, the daughter of the Mayor, seemed to have _no_ idea what diplomacy was, and was a terrible liar. (To clarify: her lies were so idiotic and transparent it was honestly _horrifying_ to witness.)

Alya could never seem to sit still. She was constantly twitching or bouncing in place. This girl had _so_ _much_ energy, like a wild animal that was always eager to chase and pounce.

Nino was a natural strutter, and quite possibly the sassiest kid in class. It was a tough call, considering certain others in the room, and the fact that he was _generally_ pretty chill about everything, but get him into an argument and _boy_ could he be sassy (and over-dramatic, but Sarah was pretty sure a certain pig-tailed girl had him beat there).

Ladybug was so in love with Adrien it _hurt_ to watch.

And Chat Noir was agonizingly oblivious.

Yup, there it was. In just three weeks, she had figured out what _clearly_ NO ONE ELSE HAD FIGURED OUT, and she really, _really_ wished she hadn't. Marinette and Adrien, the secret heroes of Paris, really should have been a _little_ less obvious.

…

As soon as Sarah realized the _heavy_ responsibility of knowing what she did, the girl had _immediately_ scoured the _entire_ Ladyblog in search of information. It wasn't enough though. She was no less _terrified_ of becoming an Akuma, and being the _end_ of Ladybug and Chat Noir. Not that she _really_ expected to become some super amazing villain capable of defeating them in a mind-numbing display of power, but obviously Hawkmoth would _immediately_ find out their identities through her.

So, she did the smart thing, and approached Alya while Marinette was with her. Alya knew a lot and would freely share anything she knew, and if she was wrong about anything a quick study of Marinette's face would probably give it away. (Marinette was a _great_ actress, but only when she was trying.)

To Sarah's delight, Marinette made some helpful suggestions on the subject matter. Whatever came out of the Class President's mouth was most _certainly_ something she could trust to be true (at least, concerning the specific questions Sarah was asking).

So, she felt confidant afterwards that she understood, as best she was able, the process by which a person became an Akuma, and how to avoid becoming one. Basically: stay positive, run away from spooky looking butterflies, happy thoughts, happy thoughts, happy thoughts, and _don't_ give in to evil voices promising you anything you wanted in exchange for miraculous jewelry, _if_ possible.

Sarah considered herself to be a difficult person to truly upset, at least to the point that seemed to be targeted, so she tried to assure herself that she'd be fine.

…

About two weeks later, Sarah's fears finally began to subside. She even began to _enjoy_ being in on the big secret, finding it _thrilling_ to be able to help the heroes keep their covers, even though they had no clue she was doing it.

Sure, she was slowly becoming a class clown with some of the stunts she pulled trying to divert attention, but her family was moving back to Ireland that summer anyway. She would survive the temporary mortification. Probably.

Unfortunately, her sudden activity had apparently taken up too much spotlight for a certain blonde's liking. And, thus, Chloe was Chloe, and the wealthy heiress managed to launch a verbal strike that hit right where it hurt the most.

Why try so hard for attention when you clearly weren't worth it, right?

Maybe Sarah shouldn't have taken it so hard. Chloe was a bully, she _knew_ that. And Marinette, always the class hero, wasn't the _only_ one to speak up and defend her from the verbal bashing...but maybe that made it worse. People were wasting their time, wasting their _breath_ on her, and it was _frustratingly_ difficult to focus on the positive side after someone managed such a critical hit on the ego.

Class was about to start, the teacher had _just_ walked in, but Sarah just wanted _out_. Calling out a choked apology, Sarah made a mad dash out of there, ignoring any and all calls after her. She was already crying, and there was no _way_ she was going back where everyone would see it. She just wanted to be _alone_.

The shadowy space between the bushes and the front of the school turned out to be her preferred hiding spot. The small curtain of browning leaves, obstructing her from view, yet also allowing her to see anyone coming, made her feel safer. It was a chilly fall day, but she was dressed warmly enough that curling in the fetal position kept her from shivering.

She heard and saw Marinette pass by, looking for her, but Sarah was just too mortified to answer. Soon enough Marinette left, either to continue looking elsewhere or head back to class, and in the peaceful quiet Sarah quietly cried against her knees.

She never did see the butterfly coming.

"Hello, Chameleon, I am Hawkmoth," a lulling voice called to her, "I will give you the power to become _whomever_ you wish."

Sarah listened intently, the proposition harmonizing oh-so-perfectly with her desires.

"All you have to do in return, is bring me the Miraculouses of Ladybug and Chat N-"

"N-no!" her eyes suddenly widened, horrified as she finally realized what she had been about to agree to, "I-I don't want to! I won't help you! I _won't_!"

"...why not, my dear?" the voice recovered, though her reaction left him tense, "Are you really alright with staying the way you are? Hasn't it _always_ been your dream to-"

"GET _OUT_ OF MY _HEAD_!" she screamed, terrified and desperate.

The rejection was so fierce, so absolute, that not only was _Hawkmoth_ startled, but Sarah herself was left huffing and wide-eyed as the butterfly suddenly popped out of her mood-stone bracelet.

She didn't really panic, not until _after_ she hastily lunged and caught the butterfly in her bare hands, clumsily crashing down into the brush in the process.

After she managed to scramble back on her feet, she ran back to the classroom at full speed, and burst into the room. Everyone took in her roughed-up appearance, hair messy and tangled with leaves and twigs, clothes dirty and stained, and a wild look in her damp eyes as she first singled out Marinette, and then shakily turned to Alya instead.

"Sarah!" Mademoiselle Bustier was understandably concerned by the scene, "What is the meaning of this?"

"Please, please, _please_ tell me you can contact Ladybug! Right now!" Sarah exclaimed to Alya in a panicked rush, completely ignoring the teacher, "It's trying to escape! HURRY!"

Alya left her seat, worriedly going over to her, but having no idea what the girl was going on about. Sarah shook her cupped hands in emphasis, gesturing desperately with her eyes and head, for she was honestly too terrified to actually _say_ what she was holding.

"I-it tried to possess me! Please get Ladybug! Quick!" Sarah was already in tears.

Adrien beat Marinette to the punch, and with great urgency told Alya to post an alert on the Ladyblog. Alya quickly did just that, finally understanding what was going on. And while Marinette hastily slipped away, Adrien hurried over to Sarah, and helped her remember that breathing was a thing she should definitely be doing. Despite whimpering practically every time the butterfly moved, she _tried_ to focus on happy thoughts, and to block out the panicked voices of the rest of the class as best she could, praying silently that Marinette would hurry.

And Ladybug did not disappoint. The entire class watched in awe as she arrived, Alya automatically whipping out her phone to record the interaction. Seeing her salvation had arrived, Sarah released the insect as if it was burning her, and would have collapsed to the floor if Adrien and Alya hadn't been there to catch her arms. As it was, they gently helped her sit down.

Ladybug purified the butterfly with ease, and then knelt down in front of Sarah.

"I can't thank you enough, mademoiselle. That was incredibly brave of you."

Sarah was immediately bashful, "...s-some _really_ great classmates told me not to listen to creepy voices in my head...I don't really remember _what_ I heard, but...I'm really glad they warned me."

She smiled up at Alya, who was slightly stunned at the glowing gratitude coming from her, before shooting the same smile at the girl she knew was Marinette, "Thank you, Ladybug. I really owe you one."

"Says the girl who defeated an Akuma for me," Ladybug replied with a warm smile, standing back up to leave, "Don't lose that courage, mademoiselle."

Soon surrounded by awestruck classmates, Sarah was helped to her shaky feet. Rose, followed by Juleka, began to fuss over her, quick hands brushing the debris out of her hair and off her clothes before she could protest. She was just arguing that she was okay now, _really_ , when Marinette rushed back in.

"Girl, where did you go?" Alya questioned in bewilderment, as if just now realizing that Marinette hadn't been in the room with them.

"I met Ladybug at the entrance," Marinette huffed and puffed lightly, as if she had run, "I wanted to make sure she found the right room."

"Good thinking, Marinette," Adrien smiled at her thoughtfulness.

Sarah bit back a smile as she watched Marinette flush.

"O-oh, it probno lem-I mean! It was not a problem!" Marinette corrected hurriedly, laughing nervously at her mistake.

"Thank you, Marinette," Sarah spoke up, kindly preventing any further stuttering, "You have no idea how grateful I am."

Marinette smiled at her, "Anytime, Sarah. I'm just glad you're okay now!"

"Me too!" Sarah laughed, smiling brightly in return.

"And I think it's pretty obvious that _someone_ was _dead wrong_ about you..." Marinette shot a glare at where Chloe remained seated.

The spoiled girl said nothing, only looked away with an irritated huff.

"Marinette's right, that was _craziest_ thing I've seen since...well, okay, I see a _lot_ of crazy stuff, but _girl_! You caught an _Akuma_! In your bare freaking hands! You rejected Hawkmoth! _Way to go_!" Alya praised, followed by several voices of agreement from the other classmates, causing the girl to suffer a rather thorough blush.

"Alright, alright, class is still in session," the teacher spoke, "Back to your seats, everyone."

As everyone began to migrate to their seats, Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.

"And Sarah," the teacher added, catching her unwilling attention, "While running out of class was highly inappropriate, I'll let it slide just this once, understood?"

The approving look she was given caused Sarah's receding flush to darken all over again, "Th-thank you, Mademoiselle Bustier..."

She paused while passing Adrien's seat, and shot him a grateful smile, "Thanks, by the way..."

He seemed surprised, and offered an abashed smile, "It was no problem, Sarah."

"I bet _Ladybug_ was impressed," she winked knowingly, and mentally snickered at how he blushed.

Then she looked up at Marinette, who appeared confused by her interaction with the boy, and offered the girl another grateful smile, "You guys are seriously the best, I hope you know that."

Marinette blinked, then looked embarrassed, "I didn't do much."

"You did more than you know. Thank you," Sarah told her, turning to smile again at Alya before hurrying on to her seat, shooting slightly more abashed smiles at Rose and Juleka.

Not five minutes later, she was desperately praying that all the backward glances would die down soon. _Really_ soon. Were they _trying_ to strain their necks?

And she _seriously_ wished she knew _how_ she had even pulled off such an apparently gape-worthy stunt. She really, _really_ didn't remember anything other than being terrified out of her mind, and it was rather frustrating.

All she knew was that Hawkmoth had pushed her _too_ _far_ and _seriously_ ticked her off, and she _never_ wanted him in her head again. Or anyone else's, for that matter. That manipulative creep had messed with...well, okay, she had nothing on him really, but she sure as heck wasn't going to let that stop her from wishing she did.

…

Despite Sarah's confusion on the actual occurrence, overcoming an Akuma possession was a pretty huge ego boost. She was now filled with a burning desire to see Hawkmoth stopped for good, and wanted more than ever to return the kindness she had received from the heroes. Thus, Sarah began to _really_ plot ways she could help them.

Her first big idea was to commission Marinette for the most realistic, and functional, Ladybug costume she could afford. On top of standard payment, Sarah promised that in return she would, from that moment on, share any notes, from any class, for the rest of theyear, absolutely judgment free and with no questions asked.

Marinette was clearly hesitant, and worried as to _why_ Sarah wanted such a thing, but the secondary offer was oh-so-tempting. Constantly borrowing notes from Alya, or whichever other classmate Marinette approached (on a discrete rotation to make it look less obvious), tended to make her classmates more aware of her numerous, poorly explained absences. Sarah had figured this was the case, and was not surprised when Marinette finally caved.

In the end, Marinette didn't charge a single euro, and asked instead for Sarah to _promise_ not to use the suit for anything reckless. She never suspected that Sarah had guiltily crossed her fingers behind her back while promising.

Sarah then proceeded to blow her _entire_ yearly allowance (begging for it in advance had been an interesting conversation, to say the least) on a custom, weapon-grade yo-yo (commissioned from a specialist that charged a pretty penny but delivered what was desired), and as many red smoke pellets as the pitiful remains of her piggy-bank would allow. (She tried not to think about all the snacks and outings she could no longer afford for the rest of the year...it was rather pathetic to get teary-eyed in class when other people talked about a new movie she'd really wanted to see...curse her attention to details.)

From then on, (once it was delivered over a week later) Sarah spent all her free time practicing with her new yo-yo. She lost count of how many times she bruised her head (and _everything_ else) with the cursed thing, but after about a couple weeks of practice she finally (sort-of) mastered the "Lucky Charm" toss, the "Shield" technique, and a simple high-speed throw, meant to strike an opponent with a painful blow, that she mentally dubbed "Yo-yo STRIKE!" (which typically came back to bite her if she failed to dodge out of the way when it returned to her). Anything tangle related still ended horribly, and was not worth mentioning, _ever_. She wasn't even going to _think_ about trying to swing from the accursed thing.

Her parkor training went a little better, which she mostly practiced at night to avoid being caught in the act (and it didn't hurt that she began a week before beating herself up with the yo-yo). Just sneaking in and out her bedroom window gave her a good warm-up (as it _was_ on the third floor of an apartment complex). However, she had over a thousand nasty scrapes and bruises to show for it, as well as twelve or more pulled muscles, a sprained ankle and an _almost_ sprained wrist, possibly a mild concussion, and four painfully broken nails (which somehow seemed to be _the_ most painful of _all_ her injuries. Go figure). And she broke her pinkie toe. She swore to herself she would _never_ tell a soul _how_ she had managed that last one. And yes, she _did_ catch a cold over part of the All Saints Holiday from running around during one of the chillier October nights, but after the first two nights it was mild enough for her to soldier through.

Progress in martial arts was anyone's guess, since she had no one to train her or practice with (she'd almost made the mistake of asking one of her cousins over the Autumn Holiday, which probably would not have ended well), but she was _positive_ she had the "throwing over shoulder" thing down. She was less confident about her punches and kicks. Hitting that punching bag at the gym _hurt_.

Throughout that time of vigorous self-training, she was left utterly _amazed_ at what Ladybug managed. Sarah seriously hoped that, despite her intent to do anything she could to help, she would never have to fight anyone...because she would probably be smited.

…

Then, on the first day back from the two-week Holiday, of _course_ a grouchy teacher (who apparently had had a stressful time during their break) _had_ to get akumatized and then proceed to seal the _entire class_ inside their classroom. And of _course,_ Marinette was waiting for Chat Noir to save the day, while Adrien was waiting for Ladybug to do the same.

 _Boy_ were they lucky Marinette had finished the costume and given it to Sarah a few days prior, and that Sarah was actually _wearing_ it under her clothes that day. She had debated wearing it to school because of gym (since it really would be a pain to change in and out of it in the bathroom stall, not to mention it raised questions) so they honestly _were_ lucky she hadn't simply stuffed it in her locker that day.

Well, it was _sort_ of lucky for them, but horribly unlucky for Sarah.

Sufficient to say, this _really_ wasn't how she'd expected to first use the costume. "Transforming" in a locked room full of witnesses was obviously going to make them all think that _Sarah_ was Ladybug (except for Marinette, obviously), and that was _kind_ of a big deal. Well, that and if they didn't buy it she was going to be a complete laughingstock for the rest of the year. Yikes.

But nothing was going to happen if she didn't do _something_.

So, while everyone else was either trying to break down one of the _clearly_ unbreakable doors, or watching the attempt, she quietly slipped back behind the back row of desks, and ducked down to "transform".

On top of wearing the basic suit, strategically concealed under her normal clothes, she had everything she needed stored ever-so-carefully in her bag. After slipping off her long-sleeved turtleneck, she went for the mask-wig combo (which was held together by a thin yet sturdy piece of fabric that matched her skin tone perfectly, thanks to Marinette's careful eye, and covered her face from her upper cheeks to the hairline of her wig). The earrings and then the gloves (which obviously she couldn't have hidden under normal attire without looking like a complete weirdo, and thus had asked for them to be made separate from the rest of the suit) went on next. Once she finished tearing off the rest of her outer layer of clothes, she grabbed her yo-yo and two of her red smoke pellets, checked her wig one last time, and took a deep breath.

It was now or never.

Throwing one of the smoke pellets against the ground, she managed to appear grandly from the smoke, standing at the top of the stairs with all the "Ladybug confidence" she was far too nerve-wrecked to feel. While everyone was still gasping in shock, she called for "Lucky Charm" as she tossed up her yo-yo, also discretely throwing her second smoke pellet to explode against the ceiling and praying the class wouldn't notice the difference. She then "caught something small" in her hand, blinked at it, and then cringed visibly.

" _Okay_ , I need all of you to get as far away from the door as possible, and cover your eyes and ears. I'm about to light it up in here, and I doubt any of you want to go deaf and blind. Hurry!"

As strode down the stairs and over to the door, everyone thankfully did as she said. Alya quickly scanned the group, then gaped at her, obviously having concluded who was behind the mask, before ducking with the others. Marinette hesitated, giving Sarah a deeply concerned frown.

"You too, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng," Sarah ordered, channeling complete authority she definitely didn't have, "I'm not joking. Cover your eyes and ears _now_."

"I didn't know Lucky Charm could be an _explosive_..." Marinette said in a lowered voice.

This was a critical point in the ruse. Marinette could easily call her out, since she'd made the costume herself, so Sarah had to convince her not to.

Maybe she _could_ have tried telling Marinette about her plan before initiating it, but...better to ask forgiveness than permission?

"It's like those ones you see in spy movies. _Trust me_ , it'll do the job," Sarah promised, "Now _please_ , take cover so I can do this, I have to go after that Akuma quickly!"

Marinette still did not appear convinced, but Alya suddenly pulled her down and hissed at her to stop fooling around. Sarah was relieved when Marinette finally let it go.

Once she was satisfied that everyone was doing as she'd said (and that no one was trying to record this on their phones), she carefully slipped over to pluck Adrien out of the group. Thankfully he had chosen to stand at the outskirts, as if thinking to act as a shield for the others. He looked at her in surprise, but held his tongue at her shushing gesture, and didn't resist being led back over to the door.

No one, not even Sarah, noticed a pair of indigo-blue eyes watching everything from a slightly ajar, light pink hand-bag.

"Alright, make sure your ears are covered, everyone!" Sarah called out loudly, grabbing a heavy book in her hands.

Then she turned to Adrien, and hurriedly whispered, "You need to use Cataclysm as _quietly_ as you can, okay?"

" _WHAT_?!" he hissed back, clearly panicked, yet still managing to keep his voice down.

She gave him a _look_ , " _Now_ would be _great_ kitty-cat, _before_ they realize I'm a total fraud and turn around! And don't forget to go back to the huddle before they look!"

She raised the book high above her head, making her intent to smash it against the nearest desk crystal clear, and challenged him with her eyes.

Swallowing hard, and glancing back to make _absolutely_ sure no one was looking, Adrien quickly and quietly did as she had asked. She tried not to gape at the rather stunning transformation. (She had known magic was involved, but _holy cow_!)

Indigo-blue eyes went wide, not that anyone noticed.

"Three! Two!" she called out, watching as Chat Noir used Cataclysm with a commanding whisper, immediately de-transformed (catching something small and black in his hands), and quickly hurried back to his spot with the others, "One!"

Sarah then hit the book against the desk with the loudest resounding thump she could produce.

"Okay! All clear! Let's get out of here!" she called out to them, hurrying to herd them out the messy doorway.

Adrien shared a look with her before rushing off, most likely toward his nearest cheese stash, not that Sarah had a clue about that yet.

She managed to ditch the group, including the extremely stubborn Alya who wanted answers _pronto_ , and hurried back toward the classroom where her clothes were. Only, she found her path suddenly blocked by the _real_ Ladybug.

"We will be having a talk about this later, mademoiselle," Ladybug promised, reprimand clear in her voice and posture, "In the meantime-"

"Lady-whoa!" Chat started as he realized there was more than one lady in red, "Uh...Milady, are you still mad about the Copycat thing? Because this is the _third_ time you've done this to me..."

Ladybug rolled her eyes with a groan.

Sarah giggled in surprise (and made a mental note to inquire about his comment later, if possible) before turning back to Ladybug, "Don't worry, Ladybug, I have a plan that should work in your favor. For now, though, I'm going drop the costume and wait in this classroom until your fight is over. Oh, and sorry for the confusion, kitty-cat! See ya!"

She then dodged into the empty classroom, and let out a huge breath when she saw the duo leave. After fixing her appearance back to her normal look, she perched on her desk, and waited patiently for the door to be magically fixed by the Miraculous Cure. No point in ruining her opportunity to throw her classmates off the trail by letting someone see her and Ladybug at the same time.

Fortunately, Alya quickly caught up with the _real_ Ladybug, and there was a live-stream on the Ladyblog for Sarah to watch on her phone. Alya even managed to catch some of the dialogue, which was awesome for the boredom aspect, but that also meant Alya was dangerously close to the action. _Yay_ , Marinette was going to be _extra_ cranky when she came after Sarah later.

And Alya _declared_ that she couldn't _believe_ that was her friend out there. On the live-stream. Yup, Ladybug was going to be _super_ cranky now. If Sarah's plan didn't appease her...oi ve.

On another note, Sarah couldn't help but wonder how long Adrien had been waiting to use all those teacher puns. And captivity puns. It was a good thing he didn't use English puns, otherwise she wondered if he'd make the mistake of using his _real_ name for one. That would be a painfully ridiculous way to be revealed. Good thing his main language was French. Bullet dodged.

…

Even after everything was back to normal, Sarah hesitated to leave the room. She really, _really_ wasn't looking forward to facing anyone after this.

Alya was going to badger her for answers, Ladybug was _not_ happy, and Chat Noir was no doubt still freaking out. Lord have mercy…

…

In the end, it was Mylene who came back to the classroom first. Apparently, she had forgotten something in her rush to escape. The girl gasped in surprise when she noticed Sarah waiting inside, and looked like she wanted to say something, but was hesitant to ask.

The two of them hadn't really talked much, and Mylene was a sweet girl who didn't like to pry. Even if she _was_ dying of curiosity.

"So, I got busted, huh?" Sarah asked, smiling at her.

Mylene hesitated, then nodded shyly, "Yes, Alya figured it out, and she told us..."

"Well, it's a little more complicated than you guys think..." Sarah chewed her bottom lip, "...I guess I should explain things to you guys, huh?"

"Um..." Mylene remained uncertain.

"Is everyone back?" Sarah asked.

"Er, well, some of our class is by the lockers now..."

"Alright, I'll head over then," Sarah grabbed her stuff and hopped off her desk, "Walk with me?"

Mylene nodded with a small smile, and after quickly grabbing the thing she'd forgotten she followed Sarah out of the room.

It was sort of nice to air out some initial anxiety in the presence of such a gentle classmate, even if Sarah knew the worst was yet to come.

…

"Hey~! What's up, guys!" Sarah called out nervously before the first spotters could gasp at her arrival.

 **"Sarah!"**

And thus began the mobbing and the questions. She let them get it out of their systems, trying to decipher the jumble of voices as she waited. Mostly it was a jumbling chorus of "you were actually Ladybug?!", with a whole bunch of other questions turbulently mixed in.

"Well..." she began, looking around to make sure everyone was listening, and swallowed, "...the truth is...I only became a Ladybug recently..."

" _A_ Ladybug?" Alya asked, recording this on her phone at the front of the mob.

"Well, did you really think it was only _one_ girl donning the mask?" Sarah asked, as if the question was ridiculous, "Wouldn't that be _ridiculously_ hectic?"

Lots of gaping. Even Adrien and Marinette appeared startled by the claim. Nathaniel looked somewhat dizzy, not that Sarah would be surprised.

"So, there's... _multiple_ Ladybugs?!" Alya gasped.

"Well, obviously _I_ haven't been Ladybug this whole time, but...well, you all saw me as her today, so, well, isn't it obvious?" Sarah asked, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

"H-how many?"

"I'm sorry, but we don't share that sort of information with each other," Sarah explained with a shrug, "With the whole Hawkmoth threat looming over our heads, Ladybug and Chat Noir aren't allowed to share their true identities with anyone, not even each other."

She was sort of guessing on that one, since _clearly_ Marinette and Adrien didn't know about each other for _some_ reason or another.

"So, I don't know how many Ladybugs there are, nor _who_ they are," she crossed her fingers fully behind her back, which was thankfully against the lockers so no one could see it. She truly hated lying, and couldn't really pull it off if she didn't do that, probably because of a superstitious belief formed during early childhood.

Having no clue that she was being deceived, Alya was pouting in disappointment.

"All I know is...it's _magic_ ," Sarah shrugged, "It changes you so you can become what's needed...I know I didn't become Ladybug for my physical prowess, you've all seen me in P.E., so clearly that's not why I was chosen...as far as I understand it, it's more of a "your soul was compatible" for whatever weird reason...otherwise, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been called to this...for however short it was..."

She looked down, sighing in dejection.

"What do you mean?" Rose asked, concerned.

Sarah flashed her a small smile, "...well, rule number one: "keep your identity a secret"...and I kind of blew it. The "magic" knows it too. So how can I ever hope to be a Ladybug after this?"

Her classmates' enthusiasm fell quickly at that statement.

"...why did you out yourself like that?" Nino questioned, "Couldn't you have found a way to call Chat Noir so he could bust you out?"

Sarah cringed visibly, "...I tried...he...didn't answer...and I panicked...this was my first day on the job, and...yeah, I panicked..."

Alya sighed, "So, no more Ladybug Sarah?"

Fingers crossed tightly behind Sarah's back, she smiled sadly, "Yeah, I won't be Ladybug ever again...but hey, it's okay! I got to help out once, and that's more than I could've ever hoped for, you know? I mean, clearly, I'm not anything like the other Ladybugs...magical compatibility or not, I just don't have what it takes, you know? I'd hate to be a dead-weight."

"Come on! I saw you today! You were amazing!" Alya argued, backed up by several agreeing classmates.

Sarah flushed, mortified that she was being credited for Marinette's work but unable to outright deny it, "Uh...well...that was definitely more "magic" than me, I promise you...I tried training on my own, and I really kinda stunk at it...and the creativity part? I honestly had no idea what to do with that backpack Lucky Charm dropped. _Magic_ knew what to do, I didn't."

Apparently, Marinette was "Magic" now, not that Sarah would feel inclined to really disagree.

"Really?" Alya asked almost sheepishly.

"Good thing too, I totally would have been _obliterated_ in that battle if I'd gone out as myself," Sarah laughed, "It's no wonder Hawkmoth wants it. The Miraculouses are _miraculous_."

"So..." Alya considered it, "The Ladybug Miraculous switches users?"

"I'd tell you how if I could," Sarah said apologetically.

"And you don't know any of the Ladybug identities...or Chat Noir's?"

"Nope," Sarah's fingers were really starting to ache.

"And you were briefly Ladybug, but you've essentially gotten yourself kicked out of Ladybug Camp by exposing your identity?"

Sarah laughed at the expression, "Pretty much, yeah...I bet they're not too please with me about it too..."

"Can you tell me any more about the "magic" of the Ladybug Miraculous?" Alya inquired.

Sarah shook her head, "Even if I could, it's not safe for me to tell you more. The more mysterious the power of Ladybug is, the safer it will be from the hands of evil."

Alya pouted, "You sure? I'm _dying_ to know more, and I bet my viewers would agree!"

"Sorry everyone," Sarah smiled sheepishly at the camera.

"Well, I guess that concludes our impromptu interview," Alya sighed again, turning the camera to herself, "This has been another enlightening documentation by the Ladyblog, your number one source for all things Ladybug and Chat Noir! Thanks for tuning in! Ladyblogger out!"

Sarah slumped slightly in relief, thankful there was no longer a camera on her, "Was that Live, or are you going to post it later?"

"I'm gonna post it now...unless you really think I shouldn't?" Alya asked, looking pensive.

"I think it's better you do, actually," Sarah told her, "You _kind_ of claimed to know who Ladybug was during the fight earlier...I don't want Hawkmoth to target you for information you don't actually know..."

Alya looked startled, as did a few others.

"And really, I don't mind if people see the video," Sarah assured her, "Rumors have probably spread beyond control already, so it makes things a little less awkward, right?"

"I-I'm sorry, I think I was the only one who actually realized it was you-"

"Come on, that's not true," Sarah smiled at her, "You _definitely_ weren't the only one who noticed, and I'm sure everyone else would have figured it out on their own even if you didn't say anything."

"Yeah, it was pretty obvious, Alya," Marinette set a hand on her friend's shoulder, "She became Ladybug in a closed space with _several_ witnesses...there was really no helping it."

Sarah laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck, "Exactly...I should have waited a little longer for Chat Noir...sorry for getting you guys all excited with nothing to show for it..."

"You still helped us escape the classroom," Rose piped up, "Thank you, Sarah!"

Juleka nodded in agreement, "Yeah, it, um, was very helpful..."

Sarah blushed, startled by the positivity, "Uh...h-happy to help..."

"Yeah, if not for that, I wouldn't have gotten such up-close footage of an Akuma battle!" Alya grinned.

Marinette inhaled angrily through her nose, and Sarah winced, "Uh...you're welcome?"

"I-it really was a relief to be let out..." Mylene added.

Sarah smiled at her, "No problem. A Ladybug is supposed to take care of people, right? Just like the first one always has?"

Mylene smiled and nodded.

"I still can't believe there's more than one Ladybug..." Alya whined, "They all look exactly the same!"

"Magic~," Sarah did the jazz hands.

"Seriously, you don't look anything like Ladybug," Alix looked her over, then seemed to notice something elsewhere, "Marinette looks _way_ more like her than you."

A few hearts may have stopped. This...this was bad. (Kudos to Alix though for using her eyes.)

"Oh, you're right..." Mylene saw it too.

Bad, bad, very bad. (Also, kudos to Mylene, but _seriously_?! HOW WAS THIS HAPPENING _NOW_?!)

"M-me? Ladybug?" Marinette pointed at herself in confusion, then laughed, "Are you serious?"

Thank goodness Marinette was a great actress.

"Well, if the magic could make a clumsy slow-poke like Sarah that awesome," Alix shrugged, "Maybe it could fix your clumsiness too."

Well, crap.

"Is there something you're not telling us, Marinette?" Alya asked, mostly teasing, but any moment she might start to piece things together-

"Okay, okay, so she does look a little like Ladybug, I can see it," Sarah said, shoving back her anxiety as best she could, "But even though I wouldn't have a clue who _any_ of the other Ladybugs are, I'm _pretty_ sure the "Magic" wouldn't pick two girls from the _same class_ to be her. I mean, come on. That kind of makes it _way_ too easy to blow the whole secret identity thing out of the water, don't you think?"

Wow that was convincing, and _wow_ they all _bought_ it!

Marinette looked stunned.

"Makes sense," Nino said, "Two heroes hiding their identities from each other in the same classroom? How could they _not_ figure it out?"

Sarah struggled not to appear amused, "Well, anything is possible, but even _Ladybug's_ luck has its limits, right?"

"Okay, okay, I _guess_ you're off the hook," Alya teased, elbowing playfully Marinette.

"Like there was ever any doubt," Marinette threw back with an easy grin.

Whew, that was way too close for comfort. Sarah and Marinette both discretely wiped away the sweat from their palms. Could you blame them for sweating bullets after such a close shave with disaster?

"Well, um, if we're done...I should probably head over to the library and catch up on my homework...I'd rather not be sent back to Ireland early because my parents think I'm just fooling around all the time, you know?"

"That would be awful!" Rose gasped.

"Yup, so I'm gonna try studying a little harder, so maybe if they find out about my recent behavior they won't...be quite _as_ mad?" Sarah smiled sheepishly.

Everyone in the room winced.

"Girl...good luck," Alya told her seriously.

"At least they don't read the Ladyblog," Sarah tried to lighten the mood, "Anyway, later, guys!"

…

It really didn't take Adrien long to find Sarah in the Library. She smiled up at him when she noticed him standing awkwardly nearby.

"Here to help me study?" she joked.

"Uh, um...I could?" Adrien supplied.

She snickered, "Take a seat."

So, he did, and both of them looked around to see if anyone was nearby to listen in on their conversation.

"...so...you're probably really confused, and really freaked out by all that, huh?" she finally spoke in a hushed voice.

He laughed uncertainly.

"Well, let's see if I can remedy that...for starters, I've kind of known you were...you, after about my third week here," she explained, still keeping her voice down.

He gaped at her, "You...for that long...?!"

She nodded, "Ever wonder why I started acting like a clown almost every time someone said there was an Akuma during class?"

His eyes were bugging dangerously, and his voice failed him. There was a suspicious sound from Adrien's bag. It sounded a _lot_ like someone was laughing. Sarah decided not to let whatever _that_ was distract her.

"...so, yeah, I figured it out, I've known for a while...and after that psychopath tried to brainwash me with a butterfly, I just got a little more...into helping?" she tried, "I commissioned Marinette for the suit...yeah, she is _so_ not happy I did this, but I have a good story that won't implicate you, and I know she'll buy it, so don't worry, okay?

 _"Anyway_...so, I had the suit, and I figured I could use it to act as a decoy one of these days if you guys really needed it...and then today happened, and I panicked because _you_ were stuck in a sealed room, and I was worried Ladybug could be in the same predicament...but, well, looks like she was fine after-all, huh? And I'm gonna have to deal with her too because she caught me running around in the suit...and of course, she'll see the Ladyblog...so, yup, I'm gonna have to face some music, but I know what to tell her, so, again, don't worry, I'm not going to blow your secret, I promise."

"...whoa...okay...um..." Adrien ran a hand through his hair, "...how did you figure it out?"

"I can see a lot from the back of the room...and I kind of pay attention to things," she shrugged sheepishly, "Little things just started to add up...I paid closer attention...I asked some questions...and voilà _,_ you kept proving my theories right, so I just knew it _had_ to be you... _or_ I was crazy, but, well, I've seen more conclusive evidence since then...and I just saw you transform earlier, so _any_ possible doubt is completely gone now."

He bit his lip, "...and you haven't told any-"

"I wouldn't dare," she replied promptly, "Why do you think I was so desperate to avoid being Akumatized? I know full well it doesn't matter how trustworthy a person is. All that will fly out the window if they lose their mind to Hawkmoth. So, no, I'll never tell anyone, and I swear to you I will avoid butterflies, _and_ Akumas that could potentially control me, like the plague."

Adrien began to relax a little, smiling softly, "And we've both seen what happens when an Akuma tries to possess you..."

"And I seriously _still_ can't remember for the _life_ of me how I did that," Sarah grumbled, "For all I know it was a fluke...so I'm just gonna be extra careful not to let anything upset me like Chloe did that day..."

"I doubt he'd try to come after you again after failing once," Adrien told her, "And if you ever get that upset about something, you can call me...if you think it would help?"

She blinked at the offer, then smiled softly, "Well, since you know I know now, I think being in contact is a good idea...though I was thinking more for the sake of keeping people off your tail..."

His turn to blink, "...you...you don't have to worry so much, I-"

"I worry," she dead-panned, "If I figured it out, someone else could too. I don't want to sit back and let that happen if I can actually do something to prevent it. Besides, I'm only going to be here for this one year. I don't mind if my reputation here in Paris is a mess, since I highly doubt anyone back in Ireland is going to care. Use me as an alibi when you need it, it's _okay_. You have no idea how much of an _honor_ it is to be helping such an important cause."

He said nothing. She said nothing. It was slightly awkward. She scribbled her phone number down on a scrap of paper, and slid it over to him. He took out his phone, and saved her contact info.

Then she felt her phone vibrate, and pulled it out to check it. An unknown number had sent her a text, though she had a pretty good idea who it was.

* * *

 **Unknown Number** : [Soooo what should I call you? Dopplebug?]

* * *

Sarah felt her lips twitch into a smile.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [*gasp* Its like you read my mind! You must be Psycat! :O]

* * *

Reading her reply, Adrien snorted, and just like that they were laughing.

"So, _some-bug-y_ likes puns?" Adrien inquired finally.

"I _might_ find them a-mew-sing," Sarah replied with a grin, "That "taking roll" one you used today was hilarious, by the way."

"You saw that?" he blinked.

"Alya got ridiculously close while recording, so, yeah, I heard a lot of your banter," Sarah explained.

Adrien sighed, shaking his head, "You'd think she'd learn to stay a safer distance away after nearly being sacrificed by mummies..."

"If that didn't scare her off, maybe nothing will," Sarah sighed too, "She's going to give someone a heart-attack one of these days...do you think we should make her carry around a defibrillator?"

Adrien perked, then feigned consideration, "That might be dangerous...I'd hate to be de-fibbed by a reporter."

Sarah gaped at him, then nearly banged her head against the table as she clutched her stomach in laughter, struggling not to laugh loudly in the Library.

"Oh my God, I didn't even think of that!" she gasped for breath, tears in her eyes as amusement continued to shake her, "Oh mighty Pun Master, teach me your ways!"

He grinned at her reaction, feeling quite accomplished, "Well, if you can recognize true genius, then you're off to a great start."

Chuckling, she managed to straighten in her seat, "Okay, okay, genius recognized. Hap-..."

That was when she noticed a pair of brilliant, ocean-blue eyes widely watching them from behind a bookcase. Close enough to observe, but far enough away she couldn't have heard what they were saying. Realizing she'd been noticed, Marinette zipped out of sight.

"...crap," Sarah winced, aware of what things just might have looked like.

"What?" Adrien blinked, worried by the change.

"...looks like Marinette is waiting for me to talk to her..." Sarah cringed, "Do you mind if I...?"

"Oh, yeah!" he said quickly, "Go on!"

"Thanks!" Sarah flashed him a smile, quickly pulling her books together so she could chase down Marinette, "Can I text you later?"

"Yeah, absolutely!" Adrien grinned.

"Sweet, later then!" Sarah smiled at him again before rushing off.

Marinette was no longer behind the bookcase, but it didn't take Sarah long to find her. The girl was walking slowly down the hallway, looking a bit depressed by the slump of her spine.

"Wait, Marinette!"

The girl turned to look in surprise, "Wha-ah, yes?"

"Okay, I _know_ you just saw me being all silly with Adrien, but it was _not_ what it looked like, I _swear_!" Sarah told her quickly, "I mean, sure he's cute and super likable, but it was just a friendly _chat_ , okay? I'm not into him, and he's _definitely_ not into me, so don't worry about it, 'kay?"

Marinette looked startled, blushing slightly, "Uh-um, I...I-I wasn't worried?"

"...look, I _know_ you're crazy about him, so I just didn't want you to get the wrong idea, that's all," Sarah explained.

Marinette looked flustered, but also somewhat touched by the sentiment.

Then Sarah took a preparatory breath, "...besides, we _both_ know he's head-over-heels for Ladybug, right? I mean, the _real_ Ladybug, obviously. Not a _dopplebug_ like me."

"Uh, oh...w-wait, he's _what_?!" Marinette flushed.

"Well, technically that means he's in love with _you_ , but he hasn't quite figured that out yet, huh?" Sarah tossed out with false nonchalance.

Neither of them heard the small gasp from Marinette's purse.

"W-well, _sort o-.._.y-wha-e- _ya_?!"

Marinette immediately began a "spastic fish out of water" impersonation, with only unintelligible squeaks making it out of her mouth.

"Aaaaaand soooooo... _now_ you know _why_ I pulled the costume stunt..." Sarah chuckled nervously, then flashed an overly bright smile, "Bye!"

Sarah then ran as if her life depended on it, and it just might have.

"SARAH MCCOY, YOU GET _BACK_ HERE RIGHT _NOW_!" Marinette's screech echoed throughout the school as she tore after the brunette.

"Eek! Where's an Akuma when you _need_ one?!" Sarah wailed as she ran faster.

She did manage a hasty salute to Adrien, who had _just_ opened the door to the Library entrance and gaped at her as she ran past. He gaped even wider at the half-crazed Marinette that didn't even realize he was there as she shot after Sarah.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Sarah wailed as she heard Marinette gaining on her.

Sarah never made it past the courtyard.

…

Chapter End

* * *

I do believe it will be LILA sitting next to Nathaniel in Season 2, but hey, till that's proven I can still have a little fun, right? (Please don't hurt me!)

To clarify, in this AU, I have Lila exchanging to the school for a couple of weeks at the beginning of the year (2016/2017 school year) before transferring right back out, for reasons you can probably guess. That's not to say she'll never show up again, but...it might not be as big of a role as you're hoping for. I'll say no more, lol.

And yes, that means I'm assuming that most of Season one occurred during the 2015/2016 school year, and that a new year has begun. I even tried to get accurate dates for the school breaks and such, like the "All Saints Holiday", or "Autumn Break" that was mentioned in this chapter (there are three other 2-week breaks after it before Summer Break), and according to what I've read they will not have class on Wednesdays (only 4 days of class per week), and they have an extended Lunch Break (as we have in fact observed). I'm not even going to TRY and understand what actually goes on during class time though...I NEED SLEEP, OKAY?! XD

And yes, I realize I am SERIOUSLY cheating by pretending they finish their secondary education (with all the same classmates and teachers) in the same building as the middle school they go to in canon...I am literally incapable of writing everything to obey the laws of reality in this case, so...forgive me?

Also, this _is_ the third time Chat's seen two Ladybugs at the same time. Time-traveler Ladybug & Chloe cosplaying (Lady Wifi episode) were the previous "dopplegangers". I figure anything from the Antibug episode doesn't quite count, lol.

Anyway, if you're curious enough, please, continue reading.

Hope you won't regret it~! ^_^


	2. Begging & Bribery

Chapter 2: Begging & Bribery

No one ever did figure out what possessed Marinette to chase down a screaming Sarah, tackle her to the ground, and then drag her off to God-knows-where while Sarah pleaded for mercy. Sure, there had only been a few actual witnesses to the event, and no one Marinette knew personally except for Adrien, who didn't tell a soul, but it was shocking when no one asked her about it the next day.

As for Adrien, Sarah told him simply that Marinette "had her reasons", and pleaded with him not to question it. Being the sweetheart that he was, he left it alone, and trusted that whatever had happened between the two girls was not something he needed (or wanted) to understand.

…

"YOU KNEW?!"

Sarah nodded meekly.

"HOW?!"

"...well..." Sarah cringed, "...the clues were all there...your classmates don't seem to notice it, but...it was kind of obvious that you tend to have questionable excuses for vanishing whenever an Akuma pops up...the similarities were hard to miss...and the timing of things when I paid attention...yeah...I sort of figured it out."

Marinette screamed in her throat, clawing at her head in frustration. Sarah waited warily for a following outburst.

She never expected a little, red, black-spotted creature with big, indigo-blue eyes to pop out of nowhere and smile at her.

"Hello, Sarah, I'm Tikki," the little creature said in a calm, but cheerful manner.

Sarah squeaked.

"Tikki!" Marinette gasped.

"It's alright, Marinette," Tikki told her gently, "I believe we can trust her."

Sarah swallowed hard, but still didn't trust her voice enough to attempt speech. Instead she made small noises and gestured frantically with her hands toward Tikki and Marinette.

"I am a Kwami," Tikki explained with a kind smile, "It is my power the Ladybug Miraculous wields so that my Wielder can become Ladybug."

Sarah nodded mutely. She remembered the small black blur that had been with Adrien, and realized it must have been Chat Noir's Kwami. That also explained the weird sounds coming from Adrien's bag.

"I think it was quite fortunate you discovered us," Tikki said, smiling more brightly, "You helped us protect Marinette's identity, and for that I am very grateful!"

Sarah blushed.

"You should have told me," Marinette said suddenly, expression hard.

Sarah winced.

"And you lied to me," Marinette's rigid arms ended in tightening fists at her sides, "You _promised_ you wouldn't use that suit for anything reckless!"

"...I had my fingers crossed..." Sarah admitted in a small voice.

Marinette's eyes could have been fire.

"...you would have tried to stop me..."

"OF COURSE I WOULD HAVE!" Marinette snapped, "What were you even thinking?!"

"Marinette..." Tikki tried.

Sarah worried her lip, unable to meet Marinette's furious gaze, "...I just wanted to help..."

"So, you brought an EXPLOSIVE to school?!" Marinette demanded.

Okay, so _maybe_ Marinette had a very good reason to be freaking out.

"She didn't!" Tikki piped up before Sarah could speak.

Wait, what?

"Sarah didn't have an explosive. She was just tricking the class so she could sneak you away from the others without them realizing it so _you_ could act as Ladybug, but Alya had a hold of your arm," Tikki explained, "I realized then that she knew, so I flew to her ear and advised her to simply stall instead, because I sensed that Chat Noir was near, and with Sarah the way she was I had a perfect excuse for why I needed him to break the wall down! It all worked out marvelously!"

Marinette looked quite surprised. Sarah _somehow_ managed to recover her jaw before Marinette looked her way.

"Y-yeah...I didn't have anything other than my yo-yo and smoke pellets..." Sarah casually crossed her fingers behind her back, "...so I was betting pretty heavily on you having an idea of what to do...then I heard this little voice in my ear, and so I went along with what she said...didn't actually see her till now...by the way, _wow_ , she's _adorable_!"

Tikki giggled at the complement, smiling at Sarah approvingly. Sarah smiled back, sensing that she may have just made a _really_ cool friend.

Marinette inhaled, then exhaled, "...okay, so you _weren't_ carrying around dangerous explosives...and what _exactly_ did you say to Chat Noir, Tikki?"

"I told him that a girl wearing a costume had been mistaken as you, and that the Akuma would come after her if he didn't get her out. He never suspected you were in there too, and then he saw the two of you side-by-side, so he definitely doesn't think Sarah is Ladybug either!" Tikki cheered, but then she realized something, "Oh, but you should pretend you don't know about this, Marinette! He asked me why I was there without you, and I sort of implied that you didn't know I was there, and that I didn't want you to know I was there...so he promised not to tell you about it! Wasn't that sweet of him?"

Wow. Sarah still didn't know what in the world a Kwami was, but, clearly, they were _beyond_ clever.

Marinette rubbed her temple, "Alright...so I'm not supposed to know about you talking to him, but he saw me glaring at Sarah in a Ladybug costume right outside the destroyed doorway...now that I think about it, that _definitely_ didn't look like the work of an explosive..."

"So, Ladybug is possibly aware that Chat Noir Cataclysm-ed the door...but maybe she missed it because she was distracted by the girl pretending to be her?" Tikki suggested.

"Let's go with that," Marinette agreed, for the sake of sweet simplicity, "So I just happened to be passing by, and I saw a girl trying to pass off as me...but I waited, found out exactly who she was thanks to the Ladyblog video, discretely approached her, and..."

Marinette turned to narrow her eyes at Sarah, "...told her to _never_ do something so reckless _ever_ again..."

Sarah cringed.

"You put yourself at high risk of being attacked by an Akuma, Sarah," Marinette admonished.

"At the time, it was nowhere near us..." Sarah pointed out.

"Even so, if Hawkmoth watches the Ladyblog, or if news of today spreads beyond that and reaches his ears, he'll have reason to find you suspicious," Marinette frowned at her, "He _could_ write you off as just another teen vying for attention, since he should know half the things you said were absolute _nonsense_ , but he might not. He might come after you."

Sarah winced, but then brightened, "But most likely he's seen the video where you cleansed the Akuma he tried to possess me with, so he'd _know_ I wasn't the real Ladybug, right?"

Marinette considered that, "...but he still might start to think you know something...you resisted the Akuma because you knew who I was, right?"

Sarah blushed, "Uh...m-maybe...I-I definitely asked you and Alya about it to try to _avoid_ being Akumatized, but the actual happening...I have no idea..."

"Well, if that's the case, I appreciate it," Marinette smiled softly before looking worried again, "But that plus this is a lot of unwanted attention...ugh, and I have _no_ idea how "Ladybug" is supposed to react to this..."

"I think if you just look really irritated every time someone mentions me it should work out okay," Sarah told her, "As far as the public knows: I royally screwed up, so Ladybug _definitely_ shouldn't be happy with me. Chat Noir definitely won't blame you for being irked, and Hawkmoth could take it as you being irritated with someone abusing your name for attention, but leaving it alone because it confuses people and keeps your identity safer...which it does, right?"

"...maybe...it might keep Alya off my trail for a little while, at least..." Marinette smiled a little again, then snickered, "That was a pretty close call, you almost got me busted!"

"I think my heart stopped when Alix pointed you out," Sarah laughed, finding it funnier in hindsight, "I'm just glad you played it off so well!"

"And that _logic_ you threw at them! Of _course_ there wouldn't be two superheroes hiding in the same classroom!" Marinette laughed fully.

Sarah laughed so hard she had to use Marinette's shoulder for support. Tikki giggled, watching the two teenagers lose easily to giggle fits and bursts of laughter every time they recovered long enough to look at each other. Eventually though, they managed to regain control, and Marinette had _words_.

"...never do this again," Marinette told Sarah, "If I so much as see a red and black _anything_ on you again...just...don't. I'll let it go this _one_ time, but I'm not letting you risk yourself just because you want to help. There are _plenty_ of ways to help that don't involve bringing Hawkmoth down on your head!"

"...this really wasn't how I wanted to use the suit, you know...I was just gonna confuse people, not get outed the first time I wore it..." Sarah muttered, "Today was an _emergency_..."

"It really was a good thing she had the suit today, Marinette," Tikki supported, "Though I agree I don't want her risking her safety by wearing it _again,_ it would have been a _disaster_ if she hadn't acted today..."

"I _promise_ I won't use the suit unless it's absolutely necessary," Sarah tried, "I _know_ it's dangerous, and I don't _want_ to get hurt, so I _swear_ I'll be careful!"

"Unless I specifically _ask_ you to wear it, I never want to see you in it again," Marinette held up a hand, "And make sure you hide it carefully, because if anyone from our class ever sees you with that thing-"

"-I'll tell them I got a fake suit after being kicked out of Ladybug Camp," Sarah finished with slightly obnoxious brightness.

Marinette rolled her eyes, "Fine, but I still don't want to see you wearing it."

"Understood," Sarah smiled, "So, now that we've got that figured out...how do I explain to Adrien why you chased me down like a madwoman earlier?"

Marinette blanched, swayed, and then dramatically collapsed to on the ground. The crazy rant that soon after poured out of her gave Sarah a pretty good idea what Marinette's future life goals were. She also learned that Marinette's creativity was most certainly _not_ limited to designing clothes or defeating Akumas. The girl had quite the imagination.

Sarah felt bad for her. She could have given Marinette the chance to forget the possibility of Adrien seeing that (though in all honesty he _had_ seen it), and she could have tried to convince Adrien to forget about it without Marinette ever knowing otherwise.

Unfortunately, Sarah was a little more desperate to avoid actually _agreeing_ with the suit stipulations, and Marinette's love life made a painfully perfect scape-goat.

Well, at least she _fully_ intended to help Marinette achieve her future goal of marrying Adrien and having three kids and a hamster. Though personally, Sarah _really_ hoped Marinette changed her mind about keeping a rodent. Maybe she was biased, since she _had_ had a rather traumatic experience with a horribly grumpy chipmunk as a kid, but still, Marinette's future husband was _totally_ a cat-person. Literally. There was no escaping her fate.

Unless Adrien turned out to be a dog person, which would be _incredibly_ ironic...though perhaps no more ironic than anything else involving them, so maybe there was an actual possibility? Sarah wasn't sure anymore.

…

After helping Tikki assure the panicked super-heroine that Adrien definitely _could_ overlook her behavior, and that yes, she _could_ survive facing the blond again, Sarah finally found herself home, safe and sound.

She had a few more bases to cover before could relax though, so she started texting Adrien as soon as she had a moment to herself.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [Alright, Marinette bought my story and won't tattle on me...and about the whole screaming and running thing...I kinda deserved that, so please don't question her for it because she'd have to lie, and she HATES lying...she had her reasons, good reasons, so please, please, PLEASE don't judge that poor girl for it. I really freaked her out and I feel horrible about it. And please don't ask me because I'm really embarrassed I botched that so bad! *wincing emoticon*]

* * *

Adrien, sitting at his computer at home, had barely begun reading the first text when she sent the next one.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [In other news, Ladybug tracked me down REAL fast...not fun. She agreed to go along with my "ruse for fooling the Ladyblogger" after I explained that was my ONLY reason for doing that...by some rare stroke of luck she knows NOTHING about the door being destroyed, and we better keep it that way, lol. Guess a dopple-bug was more noticeable at that moment! Whew!]

* * *

Story set, Sarah sat back and waited.

* * *

 **Adrien** : [SHE DIDN'T NOTICE?!]

 **Sarah** : [Nope, pretty crazy, huh?

 **Sarah** : [Just as crazy as everyone actually buying any of my charade, actually...I mean, seriously, I can't believe no one but Marinette was suspicious!]

 **Adrien** : [Hey, I was suspicious too!]

* * *

Plagg took one look at that text and _laughed_.

"Shut up," Adrien growled, "I only bought it for a few seconds at _most_!"

* * *

 **Sarah** : [If you hadn't been, I would have been concerned, kitty-cat, lol.]

* * *

Plagg laughed harder, Adrien shooed him away.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [I'm glad you went along with it though. I know I'm already a class joke by now, but I NEVER would have lived it down if I'd gotten busted doing that, lol!]

 **Adrien** : [Remind me to seriously thank you for that...and everything else...]

 **Sarah** : [Okay.

 **Sarah** : [Thank me for that and everything else.

 **Sarah** : [You have been reminded.

 **Sarah** : [Seriously though, I'm helping you because I WANT to, lol!]

 **Adrien** : [Gee, thank you for the reminder, guess I should get to it then. :P]

 **Sarah** : [Oh no! I've been cat-sassed! I may never recover! XD]

 **Adrien** : [THANK YOU FOR SAVING MY TAIL, ALMIGHTY DOPPLEBUG!]

 **Sarah** : [Oh no! I've been seriously thanked! :O]

 **Adrien** : [Oh no! You might never recover!]

 **Sarah** : [Oh, dear Lord! I think you're right! All this overwhelming gratitude! It's...it's...OVERWHELMING! *dizzy emoticon*]

 **Adrien** : [Oh no! WHAT HAVE I DONE?!]

 **Sarah** : [Yes! How DARE you be grateful! SHAME! XD]

 **Adrien** : [Nooooooo! Not the SHAME! :O]

 **Sarah** : [It is...too late!]

 **Adrien** : [NOOOOOOOOOO!]

 **Sarah** : [YEEEEESSSSSS!]

 **Adrien** : [No!]

 **Sarah** : [Yes!]

 **Adrien** : [No!]

 **Sarah** : [Yes!]

 **Adrien** : [No!]

 **Sarah** : [No!]

 **Adrien** : [Yes!]

* * *

Adrien realized his blunder too late, and slumped in defeat while Plagg chortled.

* * *

 **Adrien** : [RATS!]

* * *

Though she had already been snickering (so hard that she'd failed to send any "fake surrender" reply before he could realize he'd been Loony Tuned), at that follow-up text Sarah nearly fell off her bed laughing, and had tears in her eyes as she texted back.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [LANGUAGE!

 **Sarah** : [What would your spirit guide say?!]

 **Adrien** : [Spirit guide?]

 **Sarah** : [You know, that little thing I heard laughing in your bag? Was that not a spirit guide?]

 **Adrien** : [More like a spirit pain. -_-

 **Adrien** : [PLEASE tell me you didn't actually see him at some point...]

 **Sarah** : [You mean other than EXTREMELY briefly when you transformed today? Nope, didn't have a clue he existed until today.

 **Sarah** : [Why is he a pain? Is he all obnoxiously sagely or something?]

 **Adrien** : [No, just obnoxious...and reeking of Camembert...]

* * *

Plagg hmphed. Adrien just smirked.

* * *

 **Sarah** : [Eww.

 **Sarah** : [Well, that explains the weird smell in the classroom...]

* * *

Adrien gaped in horror. Plagg just looked more offended.

* * *

 **Adrien** : [Oh God, you could smell it?

 **Adrien** : [I tried everything I could think of to hide it!]

 **Sarah** : [I think it was an odd mix of gym socks, heavy cologne, and air freshener...have you tried those baking soda packets they put in the fridge?]

 **Adrien** : [Never heard of it...does it work?]

 **Sarah** : [It can only help. My mom uses them to keep everything else in the fridge from tasting like onions and things like that.

 **Sarah** : [And they use straight baking soda in Kitty Litter, you know? A Litterbox is one of the most powerful odors known to man. If baking soda works there, why not here?

 **Sarah** : [And take it easy on those crazy things you're using to try and mask the smell, I think they make it worse!]

* * *

"Baking soda would be fine compared to all those disgusting things you try to suffocate me with," Plagg stuck out his tongue in disgust.

"Anything is better than the smell of stinky cheese," Adrien huffed.

Plagg gasped, gaping at him in clear offense.

* * *

 **Adrien** : [Alright, I'll give it a shot! :)]

 **Sarah** : [And this is the part where I wish the Black Cat to have Good Luck on his venture.]

 **Adrien** : [The ironic goodwill is very much appreciated. :3]

 **Sarah** : [For the sake of noses everywhere, it must be done!]

 **Adrien** : [:P]

 **Sarah** : [Oh, and you do plan to carefully delete a lot of our messages off your phone, right? I know I'M really enjoying it, but it would be bad if by some unforeseeable chance someone hacked one of our phones and happened to see certain parts of this conversation...that's not weirdly paranoid of me, is it?]

 **Adrien** : [With me being the physical representation of bad luck? I'd say the paranoia is justified. Good call.]

 **Sarah** : [Not exactly the reason why I'm paranoid, but you make a fair point. *wincing emoticon*]

 **Adrien** : [Lol]

 **Sarah** : [...another thing that might be weird to say...thank you for taking this so well.]

 **Adrien** : [What do you mean?]

 **Sarah** : [I mean, I can tell you were totally freaking out that I figured out you were a "cat person", but you handled it really well, I think?]

 **Adrien** : [Yeah, okay, I was kind of freaking out, but my feline instincts told me I could trust you. Plus I've seen you resist an Akuma, so, I'm pretty sure I know whose side you're on. ;3]

 **Sarah** : [But it's gotta be weird, right? This was your big secret, and now you have me in on it...isn't that kind of nerve wrecking?]

 **Adrien** : [Nah, it's kind of cool! Until now all I had was Plagg to talk to about this stuff, and all he ever talks about is cheese!]

 **Sarah** : [You poor, poor kitty-cat, so deprived of dairy-free social interaction! But never fear! Dopplebug is here! :D]

* * *

"She has a terrible sense of humor," Plagg dead-panned.

"No way! She's great!" Adrien glared at him.

"As if you're one to judge," Plagg told him.

Adrien promptly threw a pillow at the Kwami. Plagg phased right through it, and hmphed at him.

* * *

 **Adrien** : [Oh great and noble Dopplebug! Thank you for rescuing me from such horrors!]

 **Sarah** : [All in a day's work, kitty-cat! All in a day's work! ;D]

* * *

"I've had enough of this," Plagg said, "Call her on the video thing so I can set her straight."

"What? No," Adrien denied.

Plagg darted for the phone.

"Plagg, no!"

* * *

 **Adrien** : [Haiku]

 **Sarah** : [Wait, what?]

* * *

Sarah blinked in bewilderment as Adrien followed the odd text with a video-call request. Checking to make sure her door was closed, and window covered, she promptly accepted it.

"Plagg!" Adrien's voice sounded a distance away, and all she could see was pitch black, "Give me back my phone!"

She wasn't sure whether to laugh or be concerned.

"Can you hear me, crazy girl?" an unfamiliar, pompous male voice was crystal clear in the phone, "I see your dumb human face on the screen."

"PLAGG!"

"You...you're kind of covering the camera..." Sarah struggled to stifle a snort and giggle.

"Ah, so you _can_ hear me," Plagg ignored the comment, "I have a question for you."

"Oh?" she asked.

"What sort of civilized conversation excludes cheese?" he demanded.

Sarah gaped for a moment, then bit her lip, fighting back a laugh, as she shrugged.

A thud, a loud gasp, flashes of bright, blurred, swirling imagery, scuffling, and then finally the still view of what looked like an upstairs library.

"Was that really necessary?" Plagg grumbled.

"God, you're embarrassing," Adrien huffed, then the phone turned to look at him, apparently sitting on the floor, "Still there, Sarah?"

"Did you just _pounce_ on your Kwa-uh, spirit guide?" she hoped he hadn't noticed her slip.

Plagg's ears twitched, but he said nothing.

"Yeah, he was being _difficult_ ," Adrien held up a small black entity so he could glare at him.

"Ooh! Is he a black cat?! I think I see ears!" Sarah tried to make out the small image on her screen.

Rolling his eyes in good humor, Adrien held Plagg closer to the phone, "Sarah, meet Plagg. Plagg, be nice."

"I'm always nice!" Plagg hmphed.

"Okay, whatever you are, Plagg, you are absolutely adorable," Sarah said in awe, trying not to squeal.

"He'd be cuter if he didn't have such a foul mouth," Adrien complained.

Plagg hmphed again, "You humans and your inability to see true magnanimity when you see it!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to use words that would imply you're any less than whatever great being you are," Sarah told him, struggling not to laugh like she sorely wanted too, "I'm just saying you're esthetically pleasing to the eye!"

Plagg gave her a once-over.

"Careful, his head is already too big for his body," Adrien warned, slowly releasing the tiny fiend at last so she could see him fully.

"Oh, you have a tail too!" Sarah cheered, "I love it!"

Plagg posed a little, and Sarah bounced in delight. Adrien rolled his eyes at Plagg's antics.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Plagg," Sarah smiled.

"It should be," Plagg agreed.

"Plagg!" Adrien scolded.

"What?" Plagg looked indifferent.

"I don't mind, Adrien," Sarah giggled, "Though I would like to ask...what exactly _is_ Plagg?"

"He's what's called a Kwami. He's basically the spirit of the Black Cat Miraculous," Adrien explained, "Kind of like the genie and the lamp, if that makes sense."

"I'm not a genie! I'm far more impressive!" Plagg argued.

"I get it. And I agree, Plagg, you're way cooler than a genie that only grants a few wishes," Sarah said.

Plagg looked smug.

"Are you done inflating his ego?" Adrien dead-panned.

"Sorry, I just think it's so cool that Kwami exist, you know?" Sarah explained, "Can you tell me any more about them? Or, uh, is that something I shouldn't be asking about...?"

She cringed sheepishly as she realized how nosy she was being.

"Like I said, Plagg only really talks about cheese, so I don't know much," Adrien shrugged, "I know Ladybug has a Kwami too, but I don't know anything about them. Hopefully they don't eat Camembert too, I would hate for my Lady to suffer the same awful stench I have to live with."

"It's not _my_ fault your nose is unable to appreciate the heavenly scent," Plagg huffed.

Adrien gave Sarah a look that seemed to say, "You _see_? You see what I have to live with?", and Sarah giggled.

"But wait...a spirit that eats?" Sarah questioned, confused, "If he's a spirit, why does he have to eat?"

Adrien shrugged, "I don't really get it either. He _has_ to eat after I use Cataclysm, so for whatever reason he needs to eat, spirit or not...though he'll eat when he doesn't need to too..."

Sarah nodded, listening with interest.

"Speaking of eating, all this talking has me _famished_ ," Plagg complained, crossing his little arms in irritation.

"I already fed you," Adrien retorted.

"It wasn't enough!" Plagg returned.

"You ate two wheels!"

"So?"

Sarah failed to stop a laugh.

Adrien looked at her, then sighed, "Mind if I run off right quick? He's not going to stop whining otherwise."

"It's fine, I can chat with your Kwami till you get back," Sarah smiled.

Adrien nodded, and set the phone down on the coffee table before running off to the kitchen, "Behave, Plagg. Be right back."

Sarah watched Plagg watch Adrien leave the room. Then he turned to look at her.

"So, you've already talked to Tikki?" he asked.

Slightly surprised, Sarah hesitated, "...you know who Ladybug is?"

"Too easy," Plagg snorted, "And if you're still in one piece after that girl chased you down, I'd bet Tikki stepped in."

"Tikki is a _genius_ ," Sarah bounced a little in glee, "I hope I can talk to her again sometime. I really like her."

"Eh, she's okay," Plagg said with a smirk, "She's a lot more fun than most of our group, even if she _is_ ridiculously perky."

"Group?" Sarah asked, curious.

"The seven of us," Plagg indulged her a bit, lounging in the air while looking a little bored, "Wayzz is always going on and on about balance and inner-peace or whatever, Trixx is a huge know-it-all who thinks she's _so_ clever, Duusu is a crybaby who fusses about _everything_ , Pollen is a shouty slave-driver with as much bite as her bark, and Nooroo...usually just won't shut up about making people happy."

Sarah noticed the lackluster tone toward the end, "...usually?"

"...Nooroo is the butterfly," Plagg supplied, tail twitching in irritation, "This isn't the first time he's fallen into the wrong hands, but it's always a huge pain getting him back."

Sarah's eyes slowly widened in horror, "...oh God...that poor Kwami..."

"He'll be fine," Plagg shrugged, "He may be a wimp, but he bounces right back like one of those annoying bouncy balls. And we'll get him back, it's only a matter of time."

Sarah pressed a palm to her mouth, fighting back a small round of tears as she nodded slowly. When she spoke, her voice was small and tight with emotion, "...I'll help however I can."

"Do what you want," Plagg said nonchalantly, "I'm not about to turn down free help. Less work for me."

Sarah offered a half-smile, though she still felt like crying a little for the sake of some sweet-sounding little entity being forced to empower a very evil man.

"What's taking Adrien so long?" Plagg hmphed, "He should be back with my Camembert by now!"

Sarah chuckled quietly, and smiled a little more normally, "Where are you guys anyway? I thought I was seeing a library, but..."

"This is Adrien's bedroom," Plagg threw out.

"...his ceiling is _unfairly_ high," Sarah gaped.

"His dad has more money than he knows what to do with," Plagg said, "He should devote more of that money to making cheese instead of dumb clothes."

Sarah whistled, "That would probably be a lot of cheese..."

Plagg sighed dreamily.

Covering a quiet giggle, she considered if there was anything else she should ask, then realized, "...quick question...why don't Ladybug or Chat Noir know who the other is? Is it really because Hawkmoth makes it too dangerous for them to know?"

"Eh, probably. Personally, I think it makes things pointlessly complicated, but Adrien does get zapped by Akuma an awful lot, so I can see why Ladybug would insist."

Sarah winced, "And unlike me, he has to actually run _toward_ the scary Akuma that can brainwash you...yeah, I can see how that would be a problem. And you can't tell _Ladybug_ who Chat Noir is, or else she'd _really_ want to tell him...oi ve."

"They're both hopeless idiots," Plagg sighed, shaking his head.

Sarah sighed too, "If only Adrien had fallen for Marinette first..."

"Or Ladybug fall for Chat Noir instead," Plagg suggested.

"Forbidden Love angle, huh?" Sarah smirked at him.

"Eh, it's gonna work out either way anyway," Plagg shrugged, still lounging in the air like he had no real care.

"For the sake of sanity, they'd _better_!" Sarah laughed.

Then they both heard the door open, and their conversation was over.

"Sorry that took so long! Nathalie caught me in the hallway and-"

"My one true love!" Plagg shot toward him like a bullet.

After gaping in amused shock, Sarah fell over, laughing into her pillows.

"Sarah? You still there?" Adrien picked up his phone.

Still snickering, Sarah sat up and took her phone, "I most certainly wasn't bored talking to your Kwami. He's quite the fascinating host."

"Well, at least there's that," Adrien chuckled.

"Do you mind giving me a tour of your apparently _huge_ bedroom? Plagg kind of skimped on the details and now I'm going crazy with curiosity over here," she told him.

"Curiosity killed the cat," he warned her with false seriousness.

"Oh, but you're still kicking, so I guess satisfaction _does_ bring you back," Sarah feigned realization.

Adrien gaped, then pouted in partial disappointment before it inevitably became a smirk, "Are you trying to out-cat me?"

"Well, _someone_ has to keep you on your toes," Sarah grinned back, "What would Ladybug say if I let you get rusty?"

"Thank you?" Plagg suggested.

Adrien shot him a dirty look.

Sarah clicked her tongue, "I Camembert your attitude, Plagg."

Plagg gaped at her.

Adrien snickered at the Kwami's reaction, "Alright, Sarah, you've officially earned a grand tour of my room."

"Yay!" Sarah cheered.

"I'm _surrounded_ by dorks with bad taste in humor..." Plagg grumbled, flying off to the safety of his trashcan.

"I thought you _liked_ conversation involving cheese!" Sarah called after him, grinning.

"Not for a _joke_!" he shot back, already gone from her view.

The two teens snickered, finally leaving the Kwami alone with his cheese.

…

Sarah was left very much jealous of Adrien's _insane_ bedroom, but really enjoyed chatting with the boy. They ended up joking around until Sarah's mom poked her head into Sarah's room, surprising the girl.

"Dinner time, birthday girl~!" her mother sang softly with a cheerful smile.

"Wait, it's your _birthday_?" Adrien's jaw dropped.

" _Did_ she say birthday? Haha, my mom is so funny, I gotta go, talk to you later!" Sarah rushed out, "Bye!"

Adrien made a funny face as she hung up on him.

"Who was that? A friend?" her mom was curious.

"...yeah, I guess he is," Sarah smiled softly.

" _He_?" her mom's eyes subtly sparked.

"He's in love with someone I greatly admire, and she is absolutely crazy about him too, but don't you _dare_ tell anyone I said that, because they're both idiots who haven't figured it out yet."

"...you could have just said he was _just a friend_ , sweetie."

"And you wouldn't have bought it for a second, mama."

Her mom snorted, prodding her to get her moving, "Alright, alright, move that teenage attitude over to the dinning room, everyone is waiting."

"Everyone" being her father and a few relatives that lived nearby, because Sarah was a scatterbrained chicken who hadn't told a soul it was her birthday. She'd been a little, er, _wrapped up_ with her secret training, and had pushed off planning anything till the last minute. She hadn't wanted to inconvenience anyone on the first day back to school (seriously, what an unlucky day to have a birthday), so she had figured a small get-together over the weekend would be more reasonable for an actual "party".

She _had_ intended to invite a few classmates, she'd _meant_ to do it that morning at school, but then she'd arrived late, and then...in all the chaos that had followed, she'd missed the opportunity, and now she wasn't sure if she really _wanted_ the extra attention.

Her mind began to change, however, when she received a text from Rose, and then another from Juleka not long after. The two of them were more concerned about her than she'd realized, and their encouraging words touched her greatly. Rose was more or less the heart of the class's back row, easily brightening the lives of the shy introverts that found their way back there, and Juleka had a way of gently supporting others that was truly endearing. It made Sarah regret the fact that she hadn't once invited them over to her family's apartment...and her birthday made the perfect excuse to remedy that.

So, she took the plunge, and asked them if they wanted to come hang out Sunday afternoon, saying it was her "birthday weekend" without clarifying which day it was. Both of them promptly replied that they would come, and Sarah couldn't help but feel blessed.

Hopefully she wouldn't be shipped back to Ireland before the weekend.

…

The next day, it became clear that _somehow_ word of Sarah's exploits had _not_ reached her parents, or any of her French relatives...but _somehow_ a couple of her younger Irish cousins heard about it, and called her up later that day. She gave them the same story she'd given her classmates, begged and bribed them (using the birthday-card for all it's worth), and they were miraculously merciful...or, at least, as merciful as scheming relatives could be. Regardless of the hoops she had to go through, at least she trusted them to keep their mouths shut.

At school, she observed with sympathy as Marinette panicked around Adrien just a little more than usual...and watched with glee as Adrien just _smiled_ at Marinette and subtly reassured her that everything was fine and that he wasn't judging her for _anything_. The love-stuck girl was practically floating on clouds for the rest of the day, and Adrien appeared quite pleased to have made someone happy.

For someone who was entirely devoted to Ladybug, Adrien sure cared a lot for Marinette. It was both reassuring and frustrating simultaneously.

Chloe was more huffy than usual that morning, but fortunately didn't find it worth the effort to bother Sarah about the Dopplebug fiasco. And while she earned a few glances, no one else sought to confront her about it either, much to her relief. Nathaniel gave her a bit of a strange look when she took her seat, but otherwise treated her as if nothing had changed. He was surprised when Sarah invited him to her party, which she explained wouldn't be anything special, but in the end appeared to appreciate the invite.

When she found the chance, Sarah approached Alya and Marinette.

"Hey, um, are you guys free Sunday?" Sarah asked.

The two girls shared a glance, and shrugged at each other.

"I think so, why?" Alya answered.

"I'm throwing a small birthday party at my parent's apartment," Sarah explained, "It's nothing fancy, but I'd like it if you guys could make it."

"This Sunday is your birthday?" Marinette asked, surprised.

"It was earlier in the week actually," Sarah answered, rubbing the back of her neck with a sheepish smile, "I kind of forgot to tell anyone."

Marinette suddenly blanched, " _Please tell me it wasn't yesterday_."

Gosh dang it, why was Marinette so quick to assume worst-case scenarios?

"It wasn't yesterday?" Sarah did as she was told, blinking innocently.

"Aww, _girl_ ," Alya didn't buy it, and was most likely milliseconds away from crushing her in a comforting hug.

"O-okay, fine, it was, but _please_ don't tell anyone..." Sarah cringed, knowing full well she couldn't lie her way out of this one, "I wasn't really planning to celebrate until this weekend anyway, and seriously, I got to play _hero_ for the day. Would you really call that a bad way to spend a birthday?"

"...well, I guess when you put it that way..." Alya relaxed her stance, no longer intent on smothering her like a mama bear.

"And on top of that, Adrien and I bonded a little over Ladybug trivia. Apparently he's a _huge_ fan-boy," Sarah silently swore to apologize to Adrien later for this, "He just might be crazier about her than _you_ are, Alya."

"You're kidding," Alya laughed lightly, glancing toward Marinette in concern.

Marinette being bright red wasn't helping her be any less worried.

"Don't worry, Marinette," Sarah smirked a little, "My Ladybug senses tell me you're the only _real_ girl in his scope."

" _Sarah_!" Marinette hissed, possibly even redder than before.

"Oh my God, are you _serious_?!" Alya bounced in place, all sense of anxiety evaporating immediately.

"Hey, I see _everything_ from the back row, he's _totally_ sweet on her," Sarah grinned, "Did you see the way he smiled at her today? He's too busy dreaming of Ladybugs right now, but sooner or later he's going to _turn around_ and _see_ what he's been missing."

"Th-that was probably just him being friendly..." Marinette stammered, but then she sighed dreamily, "God, he's so perfect..."

"Well, I better go see if _Monsieur Perfect_ can come over Sunday," Sarah giggled, "I'll keep you guys posted, okay?"

Alya squealed, Marinette sputtered.

…

As soon as she could, Sarah then quietly called Adrien aside, and sheepishly apologized for hanging up on him so abruptly the night before...and then further apologized for outing him as a Ladybug fan-boy to Marinette and Alya. He seemed to understand the need for a cover-story, and it wasn't exactly a lie either...so while he was a bit embarrassed, he wasn't mad.

Then he lit up when she asked if he could come to her party. His mood dampened a bit when he realized he wouldn't be able to make it until halfway through, but Sarah promised she would hold off on the major events until he got there. She also sheepishly told him he could bring Nino along, since she felt awkward inviting him herself when she hardly ever spoke to him, and it felt weird inviting the guy's best friend and girlfriend without inviting him too...and Adrien had to stop her ranting with a shoulder pat, and a promise to talk to Nino for her.

Saturday she crossed her fingers that her parents wouldn't suddenly find out she needed to be shipped out of the country.

Sunday, Sarah had so much fun she wouldn't have cared if they had. (And Marinette's face when Adrien's present turned out to be a Ladybug-print wallet might have caused Sarah to pop a rib from laughing _way_ too hard.)

…

For obvious reasons, Sarah was a lot more careful with the suit afterwards. If Marinette were to notice, it absolutely would _not_ end well for her. So, she switched around, rarely if ever wearing it to school (and _definitely_ not on the days they had PE), but she wore it often after school and on their days off. (Her family never laid eyes on the suit either, thanks to a certain zip-up pillowcase she used to wash it in.)

Fortunately, turtlenecks most certainly were not out of place during the colder months. Not that they were really an uncommon part of her daily wardrobe anyway. For whatever reason, high-necks on her shirts didn't bother her the way they did some people, and they fit her more conservative style (which could partially be blamed on the nuns' influence, but she still had a mind of her own, thank-you very much).

With a little caution, and a little luck, Marinette didn't suspect it. And then, Sarah _finally_ found the opportunities she _had_ been planning for.

It was just a little thing, really. All she had to do was don the suit, let herself be seen in a strategic place, preferably by people with cameras, and then vanish as quickly as possible (not only to avoid being caught, but because it was _winter_ by this time, and a thin fabric suit wasn't _exactly_ warm). It was just a little something to confuse people, give them sightings where Marinette obviously couldn't be at that time, and therefore make it harder and harder for anyone to believe that Marinette could possibly be Ladybug.

She did this as often as she dared, and only when she knew for _certain_ that Marinette would _definitely_ be busy elsewhere. Unless, of course, it was during an Akuma attack. That was the most terrifying time to do it, and she was extra careful not to be "seen" unless she knew the Akuma was rampaging far enough away that she could disappear before they came looking for her.

She only used her suit during Akuma battles where Ladybug hadn't appeared yet, when she knew Marinette was caught up in something somewhere and couldn't rush out right away, or when Ladybug had to run off to "recharge". She did not, for sanity sake, do anything of the sort if the Akuma was the brainwashing-type. During _those_ attacks, she immediately hunkered down in a safe place somewhere, and prayed her butt off that the heroes would win, and quickly.

Marinette _did_ begin to wonder why she was sighted where she didn't remember being, but Sarah was quite good at playing dumb, and at throwing Adrien into the conversation to effectively distract Marinette. Sarah _did_ receive a rather surprising lecture from Tikki when she was alone in the girl's bathroom, but, though she was reluctant, the Kwami agreed not to out her to Marinette.

Sarah suspected Tikki even helped keep Marinette from questioning the "suspicious sightings" too much as well. It almost made Sarah want to break down and beg Marinette to let her hang out with the Kwami sometime, but caution won out in the end so she never did.

Unfortunately, while her attempts at caution managed to avoid being busted by Marinette, they were not enough to keep her from being caught by a certain cat.

It happened right after an Akuma's appearance hit the news stream. Neither hero had shown up yet, and it was quite far away from Sarah's position. She'd been out shopping, thus was in what she considered a great place for a random and confusing "sighting" to take place, _and_ she was wearing the suit. She also knew that Marinette was babysitting that day, nowhere near the current chaos the Akuma was causing, and it would look _incredibly_ suspicious for her to vanish suddenly. On that note, Sarah sent Marinette a text asking if she needed a substitute babysitter again.

It wasn't the first time she'd offered. Manon was a cute kid, if a bit hyper and stubborn, but then, most kids her age were like that. When Sarah had substituted last time, Marinette had bribed Manon with sweets, and repaid Sarah with the same. Unable to buy treats on her own due to lack of funds (hopefully that yo-yo would pay off _one_ of these days, gosh darn it), Sarah had been overjoyed. She'd even managed to squeeze in a small chat with Tikki, something that always made her day.

Marinette quickly replied that she would appreciate the help this time, and asked to meet her at her house ASAP. Maybe Sarah should have run for it right then, so Ladybug could get to the Akuma faster, but she couldn't help the nagging feeling that someone might question Marinette's irresponsible absence (Manon's mom was a _reporter_ , after-all), and she wanted to make sure Marinette stayed in the clear. Thus, she decided one _very_ quick little "sighting" would be for the best. It wasn't like she could get to Marinette right away anyway, considering she was a fair distance away from Marinette's house currently, so really, was there any harm?

So, Sarah snuck onto a rooftop, and was just about to pull the wig-mask combo on when a pair of boots landed near her.

Sarah gave out a startled squeak, and fell back on her butt.

"Sarah?" Chat Noir raised an eyebrow.

She was wearing nothing but the bright red suit from the waist up, her top and coat thrown in a quick pile nearby, and she still had the wig in her hands. It was safe to say she was busted.

"H-hey!" Sarah laughed nervously, barely resisting the urge to hide the wig behind her back, "Isn't the Akuma on the other side of town?"

"Furtunately..." Chat Noir crossed his arms, brow still raised at her, then he seemed to realize something, "It was you! _You're_ the reason why Ladybug seems to be everywhere at once! It all makes sense now! Ugh, I should have known!"

Yup, busted she was.

"...please don't tell Ladybug?" Sarah pleaded meekly.

He sighed, "...I know you want to help us, Sarah, but this isn't-"

"I'm still helping!" Sarah protested, "Like you said, Ladybug seems to be everywhere at once, so what I'm doing makes it that much harder for people to figure out who she is!"

"...and what makes you think she's _not_ going to figure out what you're doing, even if I _do_ keep quiet about it?" he inquired.

"Well, she hasn't figured it out _yet_ ," Sarah shrugged, allowing a small smirk.

"But what's to stop her from cat-ching you in the act?" he challenged, "You didn't see _me_ coming."

Sarah slumped, pouting as she muttered, "I wasn't keeping tabs on where _you_ were..."

"Right, so you just so happen to _always_ know where Ladybug is?" he challenged again, rolling his eyes before fixing her with a look.

"...no..." she ground out reluctantly, crossing her fingers behind her back, "But I'm pretty good at figuring out where she's _not_! It's not that hard! So please, _please_ don't out me?"

He frowned, looking a little conflicted, "...I don't like keeping anymore secrets than I have to around her..."

"I know you don't, but..." Sarah floundered, "...please, I just wanted to make it seem like her civilian self couldn't _possibly_ be Ladybug..."

Her phone went off, and Sarah realized with growing dread that it was probably a frantic Marinette who was now _counting_ on her to save her from baby-sitting duty.

"Uh...talk later?" Sarah suggested quickly, grabbing her clothes and yanking them on, "You really need to take care of that Akuma!"

"Not going to pull a Dopplebug appearance?" he inquired, already grabbing his baton to take off.

"Not if it's going to make me late for an important thing!" Sarah replied, almost done dressing, "And I don't want to keep you!"

"Do you need me to give you a lift?" he asked, growing concerned at how rushed she appeared.

"No-no! You need to take care of the Akuma!" she replied quickly, already slinging her pack over her shoulder, and holding her ringing phone in her hand, "Shoo!"

"Okay, okay!" he surrendered, "Talk to you later then."

"Later!" she smiled brightly, "And good luck!"

He offered a salute, and shot off on his baton. Sarah waved him off, then hurriedly checked her phone. She'd missed the first call, but she managed to catch the second one as she hurried back into the building and down the stairs.

"I'm really sorry! I ran into a little snag, but I'm on my way now!" Sarah promised.

She would run the whole way if she had to.

…

She _did_ run the whole way. Sure, she wasn't exactly a _fast_ runner, but her stamina somehow held out till she got there.

Sarah wasn't babysitting for too long though. Despite its showy nature, the Akuma was defeated quite easily, so Marinette returned from "helping out a friend" well before Manon's mother came to pick her up.

Despite wishing she could hang out longer, Sarah left as soon as Marinette returned, admitting she had "something" she had to take care of. She did still have to finish picking up groceries for her parents, and it was probably better to try and talk to Adrien sooner rather than later.

Thus, after hurriedly finishing her shopping, much to the discomfort of her already aching legs and feet, she sent him a text asking if he wanted to meet up somewhere to talk. In the end, she agreed to meet him on a rooftop near her apartment.

Chat Noir almost beat her to it. Almost.

"A bribe," she held up the bag of goodies Marinette had sent her off with.

It was a shame she wouldn't get to eat any of it, but if it would help her case, then so be it. And from the way his eyes lit up at the sight of the sweets, she knew she was off to a great start.

Realizing he was falling to temptation, he cleared his throat, "I'm a hero, Sarah, not a corrupt politician."

"Then think of it as a goodwill gift," she held it a little closer, making sure he caught a whiff of the delicious baked treats, "No strings attached."

His hand started to betray him, but he hesitated.

"Well, I suppose we could talk first," she put the bag off to the side, trying not to smirk at the disappointment on his face, "Is there any way I can convince you to keep my Dopplebug activities hush-hush, or are you _really_ dead set on telling Ladybug?"

He squirmed a little, "...it's not that I really want to out you...but it isn't exactly safe for you to be doing this..."

"I'm very careful not to run around like that where an Akuma could see me," she defended her case, "And I always pick a spot with a clear escape route and easy-access hiding places. And I'm _still_ keeping myself as far away from brainwashing-type Akumas as humanly possible. You're the only one who's managed to catch me in the act, and even if Ladybug doesn't realize it, it's _helping_ her. Don't you want your Lady to be as safe as possible?"

"...of _course_ I want to keep her safe...but your safety matters too, Sarah. Are you really sure you should keep doing this?" he looked at her, worried.

"I definitely don't want to get hurt, so I promise I'll be careful," Sarah promised, "I don't even do it that often, you know? I only do it when it looks like...um...you know, like when she's forced to use two Lucky Charms to save the day? She has to get away to recharge, and if the Akuma starts off in the wrong direction because Ladybug was "seen" somewhere far off, doesn't that give you guys an advantage?"

He considered that, "Well, I think that did happen at least once...the news broad-casted that Ladybug had reappeared, and the Akuma went after her...Ladybug was pretty confused about that when I saw her afterwards."

"As long as she doesn't catch me in the act, and as long as you don't _tell_ her, she has no reason to assume it's me," Sarah said, "For all she knows, it could be any other fan trying to help her out. Paris loves you guys, you know? It's not that far-fetched to think some of your fans would consider using similar ploys to confuse Akuma, right?"

"...what about Marinette?" he asked, "Does she know you're doing this?"

"...please don't tell her either..." Sarah winced.

"Do you have a back-up plan for if someone other than me catches you?" he asked.

"All I have to say is that I wasn't satisfied being kicked out of Ladybug Camp, and I still wanted to help out somehow," she shrugged.

"What about an Akuma?"

"Again, I'm really careful to avoid that," Sarah reminded him, "But this yo-yo was _made_ to be a weapon, so if I have to hit-and-run, that's what I'll do. Otherwise I'll just run and hide. And most likely if there _is_ an Akuma cutting off my retreat, you guys will be there right after it, you know? But, I stress, I am doing _everything_ I can to avoid that scenario, _okay_?"

Chat seemed a little less on edge now, but he still wasn't relaxed, "...Ladybug still won't like it..."

"I know she won't, but even Ladybug doesn't have the right to tell me I can't cosplay on a rooftop, can she? I'm not even trying to claim I'm her, I just smile and wave if anything," Sarah pointed out, "I'm pretty sure the closest thing to a crime I'm committing is wandering around on private property, which you guys are _just_ as guilty of."

He frowned, "...I guess you have a point...but I'm pretty sure she could get Ladybug cosplaying banned in Paris if she had enough motive...Chloe wouldn't like it, but...she really respects Ladybug, so..."

Sarah whistled, "Okay... _try_ not to give her any ideas, please. I doubt that would go over well, no matter how noble her intentions...and she'd have to constantly prove herself to the police so they wouldn't arrest _her_ for cosplaying."

He blinked in surprise, then chuckled, "Well, that might be annoying, but only the _real_ Ladybug has a magical yo-yo."

"True," Sarah conceded, "Still, I think it's a bad idea."

"And you're an _expert_ on bad ideas?" Chat playfully provoked.

Sarah pouted, "...I _dread_ Ladybug finding out, but I'm really not doing anything _wrong_...it might be a _little_ risky, but I'm being careful...and magical powers or not, you guys really don't have much room to talk about recklessness..."

Chat pointedly looked away at that last bit, barely resisting the urge to "whistle innocently".

"So...I'm asking you...because this _means_ something to me..." she emphasized, "Please...you don't have to lie for me...but _please_ don't tell Ladybug..."

She waited, and after a few moments he slumped and sighed.

"...alright...as long as you keep playing it _safe_ , I won't say anything to Ladybug, fair enough?"

Wearing a relieved smile, she held out the bag of treats, "Fair enough."

The burst of delight in his eyes was so cute she had to cover a quiet laugh as he gently accepted the bag. If she was lucky, the temptation of more treats would draw him to the bakery they hailed from. And if he went there...hopefully Marinette would be around at the same time, and hopefully either Sarah would be fortunate enough to witness the encounter, or Alya would just _happen_ to record it on her phone...or maybe she should stop fantasizing about her classmates being absolute dorks in love and let them figure it out on their own. Probably.

…

It would later become evident that Sarah _failed_ to learn a certain lesson from Adrien discovering her Dopplebug activities. While she was doing an _excellent_ job at avoiding Ladybug and Hawkmoth's brainwashed warriors, she was also somehow failing to consider that Chat Noir wasn't the _only_ person she should have been keeping closer tabs on...

And when that horrible self-realization would finally dawn on her, she would also begin to understand what _months_ of painful bruising had been trying to tell her...that the yo-yo she had so _heavily_ invested in; _sacrificed_ for...was in _no way_ her "lucky charm".

…

Chapter End

* * *

I do believe Tikki could lie (and quite convincingly) if she felt it necessary (and had time to think). She was probably working on excuses from the moment she saw Sarah collaborate with Adrien to break down the door. Of course, she didn't know at the time that Sarah knew Ladybug's identity too, but she had enough time to work with that little detail. Sarah knowing actually made her explanation much less complicated. And sure, she could have just let Sarah take the heat for supposedly carrying around explosives, but I bet Tikki wasn't expecting Marinette to buy into the act, and even if she had been willing to risk Marinette figuring it out later she would have wanted to keep Marinette from worrying needlessly about a crazy girl carrying explosives to class...so, yeah.

Also, DON'T LIE IT GETS WAY TOO COMPLICATED WAY TOO FAST OMG!

My justification for Plagg opening up about the other Kwami to Sarah when he's barely said a word to Adrien? (Well, he didn't discuss anything truly confidential or anything, like their actual powers, though he did just admit that there are at least four other Kwami in existence that she wouldn't have known about otherwise...) I figure Plagg's never had a reason to really talk about it with Adrien, since Adrien has a million other things to worry about (mainly Ladybug, lol) and Plagg just wants to be lazy and enjoy his cheese. But I'm under the impression that Plagg also likes to show off a little, and Sarah is this starry-eyed little fangirl who is hanging off his every word...and he had the perfect opportunity to badmouth a few fellow Kwami, and he IS a little more lax about secrecy...so, yeah... (I'm not really sure if Plagg knows Ladybug's identity or not in canon, to be honest. He's so lazy he might not know due to simply not caring enough to pay attention...but there have been so many opportunities for him to know, it's VERY POSSIBLE he knows.)

Oh, and that random "Haiku" text? That was my favorite auto-correct text message out of several attempts I did with my own phone, trying to simulate Plagg's mad grab for the phone, and what might have been accidentally texted as a result...there were some pretty interesting results, lol! Speaking of texts...sorry it looks like a chat-room conversation, I didn't have a lot of formatting options available...hope you don't mind. ^_^;

And yes, I am being ridiculously self-indulgent with the Sarah-Adrien friendship, BUT THAT IS ALL IT WILL EVER BE, I SWEAR! I will not go against canon pairings, it would KILL ME inside to do that, SO AWAY WITH YOU JUDGEY JUDGERS! I know I probably could have left a few people guessing, but I wanted to be perfectly clear on this so people can actually enjoy their silly banter without worrying about something happening that will cause conflict in their fangirl hearts...and there are probably enough things running around in this story already to keep people engaged...at least, I hope so, lol!

On another note, sorry about the birthday whip-lash, it was actually a last-minute change. I sort of realized too late that I hadn't decided when her birthday was, and when I picked a date based on western astrology...this ended up happening. Oh well.

And if you're wondering about the mention of nuns, it's because I read that some or most schools in the Republic of Ireland are Catholic schools, with nuns. Yup.

And congratulations! You've made it through chapter 2! How much longer do you think you'll last? Wanna keep going, or have you had enough of this nonsense?


	3. No Place Is Safe

Chapter 3: No Place Is Safe

Nine weeks. Sarah made it nine weeks before Ladybug found out about her Dopplebug activities. Nine weeks, just a little over two months, since Ladybug told her to never wear the suit again. Not a bad run, honestly, though she _had_ been hoping to _somehow_ hold out till her family moved back to Ireland.

It happened during another Akuma attack, just a few days after the Christmas Holiday. Marinette was caught up in something far away from Sarah's position, and Sarah thought the Akuma was far enough away that it was safe. So, she "transformed" in a safe spot and then snuck onto a roof. It took a moment, but people finally saw her, and started taking pictures. Her goal achieved, she then made a break for her planned escape route.

How Alya managed to pop up at that _precise_ moment was beyond her. Sarah was not prepared for the bombardment of questions, and Alya apparently had no idea that "Ladybug" _really_ wanted to go through the doorway she was currently blocking.

Sarah's indecision lasted just long enough, and suddenly the Akuma found them. Alya did _not_ listen when "Ladybug" shouted at her to run, instead only ducking down behind the door-frame.

Again, Sarah hesitated. There was a huge, absurdly muscular Akuma wearing a mean smirk as he floated over her (somehow the Akuma alert had _failed_ to mention he could freaking _fly_!), and running for it would expose her back, and she couldn't leave Alya here alone, and if she tried to drag Alya off it would _slow them down horribly_. Really, what even _were_ her options?

Well, she could always throw her wig-mask combo at him, and then run for it with Alya, and _hope_ the Akuma would lose interest...and have her cover blown _beyond_ repair, ruining _all_ her hard work...and without her mask she would _never_ be Dopplebug again...

Stalling sounded better. Yup, she was going to try stalling.

"Wow! What big muscles you have!" she gasped loudly, "I don't think I stand a chance!"

"Obviously," the Akuma smirked even more.

"I'm just a poor, weak girl, would you have mercy on me if I just _gave_ you my earrings?" she asked woefully, clasping her hands before her chest, giving him the biggest eyes she could manage.

Behind her, Alya almost dropped her phone along with her jaw.

The butterfly mask flashed over the man's face, and the man frowned, "Is this some sort of trick?"

"If you promise not to hurt us, I will _gladly_ hand over these earrings," she pointed at the very earrings she wore, "Is that not a fair exchange?"

The Akuma considered that, "...well, I suppose I don't really have anything against you personally, so I guess if you're so eager to surrender, I wouldn't mind leaving you alone...as long as this isn't a trick..."

"But you also need Chat Noir's ring, right?" Sarah asked, trying not to show just how _terrified_ she was by that line of thought, "If I give you my earrings too soon I won't look like this anymore, and he won't recognize me. He might stay hidden somewhere, waiting for me to show up, right? Why not let him see me first before I give you the earrings? I could try to convince him that we're no match for you, and if he agrees that would be a lot less work for you, right?"

The mask flashed over his face again, and he growled, "I'll take my chances. Either give me the earrings now, or fight me!"

"I don't wanna fight! I don't wanna fight!" she waved her hands in a frantic "x" motion.

"Then hand them over!"

"Okay! Okay!" she held her hands up in a plea for peace, slowly reaching for one of her earrings as she struggled to think of anything else she could use before she had to resort to grabbing one of the smoke pellets hidden strategically under the edge of her wig.

"Oh!" she paused, finally thinking of something, "You're talking to Hawkmoth right now, right? He's in communication with you constantly, isn't he?"

"Why does that matter?" the Akuma frowned. The mask reappearing over his eyes, and his expression darkened further.

"I have a question for him! It's really important!" she told him with a tone of urgency.

"What _sort_ of question?" he challenged, his patience wearing thin.

"I want to know how Nooroo is doing!" she declared, "Can you ask Hawkmoth how he is?"

The Akuma made a face, then growled, "Stop stalling, and hand over the Miraculous!"

"Wait, he didn't tell you?" Sarah feigned confusion.

"He says it doesn't matter!" the Akuma snapped.

She widened her eyes and opened her mouth in fake surprise, "He doesn't even _trust_ you with something like that?"

"What?" the Akuma's brow furrowed in confusion.

"How can you trust Hawkmoth if he won't even tell you who Nooroo is?" Sarah challenged, "If he's already hiding _that_ from you, how can you trust him to keep his end of the bargain he made with you?"

"...well, is she right?" the Akuma questioned in sudden suspicion, apparently speaking to Hawkmoth, then the suspicion lifted, "Ah, so why is she asking about him?"

The Akuma winced, then glared at Sarah, "He says he doesn't have to answer to you. Now hand over those earrings!"

"I'm just worried about him, okay?!" she complained, again "reaching for her earring", "He's such a kind soul, and Hawkmoth is really mean!"

"Hey! Are you done bugging the ladies, muscle man?" a familiar voice taunted.

Oh thank God.

"My _name_ is _Super Strong_!" the Akuma snapped, momentarily distracted.

The Akuma never saw the explosion of red smoke coming, and coughed as it choked the air around him. Praying Chat Noir could handle things, Sarah ran for the door, grabbing Alya's arm and trying to pull her along.

"Come on! It's too dangerous!" Sarah hissed at her.

A sudden blast shot past them, blowing them aside, and _severely_ damaging the stairs that _would_ have been their escape route.

"Come out and _face_ me, Ladybug!" the Akuma shouted, apparently having flown safely above the already fading cloud of smoke.

Chat Noir vaulted into the air, and hit the Akuma with a flying kick, throwing him off his path toward the girls.

"I don't know what's up, but you need to get back out there!" Alya was already back to recording the fight, giving Sarah a serious look.

Sarah looked between Alya and the fight in uncertainty. Chat Noir had landed on the roof on all fours, and was now hurriedly dodging blasts aimed at him. Confidence at an all-time low, she shakily took her yo-yo in her hand and kept herself between Alya and the doorway.

Silently she was praying for Ladybug to appear soon. _Really_ soon.

Chat kept taunting the Akuma, trying everything he could to keep his attention away from the girls. There was no hesitation, no confusion, only worry. He obviously knew the real Ladybug wasn't there yet. It was a very trying thing to watch, and Sarah felt completely useless.

"Girl, he needs help!" Alya hissed at her again.

Could she do anything? Should she? Would Alya do something stupid if she just kept standing there? Would Chat panic if she ran out there like an idiot?

She had one more smoke pellet in her wig, and her yo-yo. Her "shield" technique didn't actually move fast enough to work the way Ladybug's did, and at best would only deter an opponent from approaching. She could _not_ stop a destructive blast with her yo-yo, weapon-grade or not. That meant "yo-yo STRIKE" was the only thing she could use, and she would probably only be able to use it _once_.

"Wait, is that a _wig_?!" Alya gasped.

Sarah hurriedly turned to shush her.

"Oh my God, it _is_ a wig!" Alya gaped at her.

"Not now!" Sarah again tried to shush her, holding out a hand to block the camera lens now directed at her.

Then there was a shadow; a _big_ shadow. Sarah turned to see the looming Akuma, ready to blast her (and probably Alya along with her). Chat wasn't there anymore, for reasons she could only guess. Not good.

"YO-YO STRIKE!" Sarah cried, flicking out her yo-yo with all the adrenaline power she possessed.

He caught it.

The Akuma freaking CAUGHT her yo-yo. Then, before a rather _panicked_ Sarah could pull her finger out of the loop, he grabbed the string and _yanked_.

On the bright side, she managed to grab hold of the string with her opposite hand, saving her from a dislocated, broken, or possibly even _severed_ finger. However, this also meant skid-marks on both elbows when she landed face-first on the rooftop (at least she _sort_ of landed on an ice-compress, considering the effects of early January temperatures). Winded, she didn't even have time to roll before the Akuma stepped heavily on her upper back, pinning her there.

"Now, I _believe_ you were going to hand over those earrings," the Akuma ground out, grinding his foot against her back at the same time, and dropping the yo-yo near her head.

"Y-you can have them! I don't care!" she gasped.

He may have dropped the yo-yo, but she couldn't exactly wield it in any way in this position. The only other thing she had left was a smoke pellet, and that wouldn't do much good now either. She _seriously_ needed more back-up plans. This was _so_ not a good position to be in. Metaphorically _and_ literally, obviously.

"You're wasting your time!" Alya shouted out, "I just got a notice that the _real_ Ladybug is swinging around several streets West of here!"

"What?!" the Akuma roared.

"She's running away! If you don't hurry she'll get away!" Alya declared.

"You...you're a fake?!" the Akuma thundered, harshly grinding his boot into Sarah's back so that she gasped and whimpered in pain.

"Tick-tock! Ladybug is getting away!" Alya emphasized.

The Akuma growled, "How do I know this isn't another tr-"

He was cut off when a magical yo-yo lassoed around him, and pulled with enough force that he stumbled off his victim. Recovering somewhat, he shot into the air, pulling back against Ladybug, but despite the effort required she held her stance.

Alya quickly ran out to Sarah, and helped the unsteady girl back behind the door-frame. Though her ribs and arms ached, her back was probably _very_ bruised, and she was pretty sure her elbows were scraped up good, Sarah was alright.

"Finally decided to face me, _Ladybug_?!" he snarled, wriggling free one hand to grab the string, and another to aim a blast at her.

Then an expandable baton konked him in the side of the head, causing the Akuma to turn and snarl at the assailant.

"Man, that was a _blast_ , but I'd rather party over here, thanks," Chat quipped, clearly not happy about being literally _blasted_ partway across town.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Ladybug swung forward on her string, shooting under, back behind, and then over the Akuma. The startled Akuma found her landing on his back before he could think to dodge. He then attempted to throw her off, but she got a good hold on him before he could, and thanks to the binding he couldn't whack her off.

The battle was swiftly won, and the moment Miraculous Cure restored the stairs, Sarah ran for it. She quickly hid herself in the storage room where her clothes and bag were, pulled on her clothes, and prayed neither Ladybug nor Alya would try to find her.

…

"Where did she-?! Ugh!" Ladybug growled, glaring at the stairway Sarah had vanished down while her back was turned.

Chat cringed, "Uh, Ladybug, your earrings are-"

"I know!" Ladybug snapped, frustrated.

"Ladybug, do you have any comment?" Alya inquired, holding up her phone.

Ladybug grit her teeth at the camera, "Today is a _prime_ example of why people should _not_ run around masquerading as me. And as for my "doppleganger"...if she _is_ who I _think_ she is, she is in _so_. _Much_. _Trouble_. No further commentary."

As she was walking away from Alya, Chat lightly caught her shoulder.

"You think you know who she is?" Chat asked, hiding his concern well and sounding only bewildered and curious.

"I _know_ who she is," Ladybug growled.

He winced a little, but kept his tone light, "Well, what are you going to do then, Bugaboo?"

"I'll-...oh, I don't know! _Something_?!" Ladybug tossed up her hands in frustration, "God, I can't believe she did this! This exactly what I told her _not_ to do! And how the heck is running around on a rooftop dressed as me going to help me, huh?! SHE WAS ALMOST A _SPLAT_! _GOD_! First Mademoiselle Cesaire, and now I have to worry about _this_ too?! UGH!"

Chat cringed, "Sorry, I tried to lead him off, but I got blasted across town instead..."

Ladybug blinked, and smiled a little, "So you knew it wasn't me, huh?"

He brightened immediately, and smirked, "Of _course_ I could tell a-"

The beeping of her Miraculous reminded her she needed to get a move on.

"Sorry, I have to go now, Chat," she lifted her yo-yo, eyes already locked on her target, "Later."

He pouted as she zipped away, having missed a prime opportunity for punful flirting.

…

Nobody found her hiding spot, and after letting her parents know she would be a little late, Sarah settled down to wait for an hour or two.

An influx of texts from Marinette soon followed, which Sarah procrastinated reading (the notification previews gave her the gist of it anyway). The first message was more than enough proof that she didn't want to read the rest...

* * *

 **Secret Cat Lover:** [WHAT PART OF "I never want to see you wearing that again" DID YOU NOT UNDERSTAND?!]

* * *

Yup, she definitely didn't want to read the rest. Marinette knew, and she was angry, and that was really all Sarah needed to know for the moment. Of all the ways to get busted! UGH!

Then her phone notified her of a text from Adrien. Bracing herself, she quickly opened it.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [So...]

* * *

Before he could follow that up, she leaped right into it.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [ALYA AMBUSHED ME, AND I HAVE NO IDEA HOW SHE DID THAT!

 **Sarah:** [AND NOBODY TOLD ME THIS AKUMA COULD FREAKING FLY!

 **Sarah:** [T_T And I know, I am SO dead...]

* * *

Adrien blinked, and read it over a couple times. He was just a tad confused.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [...sooooo you already know LB figured it out?]

* * *

Sarah winced, realizing she _shouldn't_ be able to know if Ladybug knew it was her or not...unless Ladybug had dropped a hint on the Ladyblog video, which she hadn't watched yet.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [OH MY GOD SHE KNOWS?!]

* * *

She prayed he wouldn't notice the semi-lengthy pause.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [I'm guessing you haven't seen the video yet?]

* * *

Whew, it appeared that he hadn't found it suspicious. On the _other_ hand...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Oh God, did she say something?]

 **The Pun Master:** [She kept it vague to the camera, but...yeah, somehow she knows it was you...o.o]

 **Sarah:** [That's it, I am officially staying in this broom closet forever.]

* * *

Adrien held a knuckle to his mouth, both amused and concerned. He started to type out a question, but she sent another text before he could.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [God, and I wasn't even worried about LADYBUG until now!

 **Sarah:** [Now I've got TWO people out to kill me! ToT]

 **The Pun Master:** [Wait, what?!]

 **Sarah:** [...Alya apparently took some VERY clear footage of my costume...and, yeah, MARINETTE is not exactly pleased with me right now...]

* * *

Adrien winced.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [Oh boy. o.o

 **The Pun Master:** [Anyway...are you okay? I saw the video, and...that had to hurt. *cringing emoticon*]

* * *

Lots of bruises, and they most certainly _did_ hurt. But nothing was broken, and honestly, she'd endured a lot worse just trying to use a yo-yo...a stupid, _absolutely_ _pointless_ spherical object which had _not_ come through for her that day, but that she had _somehow_ managed not to lose in the end.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I'm fine, I'm REALLY sorry I worried you...if I'd KNOWN the Akuma could fly I wouldn't have gone out today, I swear. Flying Akumas are the WORST.]

 **The Pun Master:** [It's also highly unfair. -_-

 **The Pun Master:** [I mean, PLAGG flies, so why can't I?]

* * *

Sarah laughed, relaxing a little.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Even if you can't fly, you're one cool cat. :)]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, thanks :3

 **The Pun Master:** [...exactly how long ARE you going to hide in that broom closet?]

 **Sarah:** [Er, well at first, I was just sort of waiting till Alya and Ladybug were no longer around...now though...]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, I hate to break it to you, but you can't ACTUALLY hide in a random broom closet forever.]

 **Sarah:** [I know, I know...but if Ladybug is looking for me, I'm probably better off waiting for the sun to go down a little, since she doesn't have night vision like you.]

 **The Pun Master:** [...I'm not so sure trying to avoid her is such a great plan...]

 **Sarah:** [*wincing emoticon*

 **Sarah:** [Are you seriously advocating me facing her while the iron is burning hot? Don't you think I should give her a little time to lose some steam?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well...avoiding her MIGHT make her angrier...]

 **Sarah:** [TALKING to her might make her angrier...o_o]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well, depends on what you say...]

 **Sarah:** ["no I'm keeping the suit, and no you can't stop me from doing this" won't make her happy no matter HOW I say it *cringing emoticon*

 **Sarah:** [And if I lied she'd never believe me.]

 **The Pun Master:** [...okay, CRAZY thought here...MAYBE you could appease her by retiring...?

 **The Pun Master:** [I mean, you've already thrown people off, haven't you? Isn't that enough?]

* * *

Sarah pouted, frowning at the screen. She understood where he was coming from, but...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [...logically speaking, I suppose I COULD retire...emotionally...not so much...]

 **The Pun Master:** [If it changes anything...with or without a mask, you're still a hero to me. :)]

 **Sarah:** [GEH! *embarrassed emoticon* I couldn't even RUN AWAY properly...and let's NOT mention what happened with the yo-yo, PLEASE!]

 **The Pun Master:** [You put yourself between Alya and the Akuma. Yup, definitely nothing heroic about THAT.]

 **Sarah:** [XP

 **Sarah:** [Seriously, no, you're not allowed to make my head too big for the wig, lol!

 **Sarah:** [And anyway, compared to you and Ladybug? Even without the superpowers I KNOW you guys can pull off the Miraculous~]

 **The Pun Master:** [Rejecting an AKUMA POSESSESSION, protecting my identity from the ENTIRE class AND Ladybug...hmm...]

 **Sarah:** [I NEED THIS WIG TO FIT! *screaming emoticon*]

 **The Pun Master:** [:P]

 **Sarah:** [XP

 **Sarah:** [And who was the one who stood with me and helped me NOT pass out when I had the Akuma in my hands?

 **Sarah:** [And WHO was so level-headed that he DIDN'T panic because I found out his secret identity?

 **Sarah:** [And who took on a VERY strong Akuma ALONE to keep a fake Ladybug from being squashed?

 **Sarah:** [HMM...]

 **The Pun Master:** [All...the gratitude...it's...overwhelming...! *dizzy emoticon*]

 **Sarah:** [NOW YOU KNOW HOW IT FEELS MUAHAHAHAHAHA]

 **The Pun Master:** [I will...get you back...for this...!]

 **Sarah:** [NOOOOOO!]

 **The Pun Master:** [MUAHAHAHAHAHA]

 **Sarah:** [Why was I grateful, WHY?! *screaming emoticon*]

 **The Pun Master:** [It's too late to see the error of your ways now!]

 **Sarah:** [Yes, I shall reap what I have sown, woe is me, woe is me...]

 **The Pun Master:** [Yes, your allergy to gratitude is truly tragic. :P]

 **Sarah:** [It makes an interesting Headstone though, "Death by overwhelming gratitude from a cat" XD]

 **The Pun Master:** [Not a bad way to go, lol.]

 **Sarah:** [XD

 **Sarah:** [Seriously though...thank you for keeping me from being squashed. I really owe you, Alya, and Ladybug...even though technically I wouldn't have been caught by the Akuma if Alya hadn't cut off my retreat, she still stuck her neck out to help me when she realized I was a fake...so even though I can't actually TELL her, I owe her one. And if I survive Ladybug's fury, I need to thank her too...o.o

 **Sarah:** [Also, I'm sorry you got blasted across Paris because you were trying to protect me and Alya. *wincing emoticon*]

 **The Pun Master:** [Hawkmoth seriously owes me a Frequent Flier card, lol. If it makes you feel any better, I stuck the landing purrfectly!

 **The Pun Master:** [Anyway, I'm just glad you managed to avoid becoming a splat while I was preoccupied. Phew!]

 **Sarah:** [I am SO glad no one became a splat today, SO glad...and I'm ALSO very glad I have a friend like you to talk me down to a normal heart rate while I'm hiding in the safety of a random broom closet. XD]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol!

 **The Pun Master:** [By the way, the sun is starting to set. You should purrobably head home soon.]

 **Sarah:** [UGH...it gets dark out way too soon in Winter...]

 **The Pun Master:** [Don't bug out on me now. I'd rather not get a midnight text from you because a Janitor locked you in that closet...]

 **Sarah:** [...WHY MUST YOU USE LOGIC ON ME?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, sorry, but this cat likes his beauty sleep, Sarah. ;P]

 **Sarah:** [XP FIIIIIIINE...out I go into the uncertain unknown, where a warrior clad in red awaits to ambush me from every direction...]

 **The Pun Master:** [The dramatics are strong with this one.]

 **Sarah:** [:P]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well, let me know when you make it home, alright?]

 **Sarah:** [Alright, alright...welp...uh...wish me GOOD luck, but ALSO pray LADY luck doesn't find me?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol! You truly like the challenge this black cat, don't you? Oh well, I'll do my best! ;3]

 **Sarah:** [XD Thank you~]

* * *

She made it home safely, and thanked whatever forces in the universe that had aided her. Now all she had to worry about was "tomorrow"...a school day...

It would take some _truly_ miraculous forces, but Sarah still prayed that she might avoid the twin-tailed terror until her family moved back to Ireland... _almost_ definitely impossible, but a girl could still hope, right?

At the _very_ least, she wanted to dodge a confrontation the next day, and make it to the temporary safe haven that was the weekend.

Step one to her multi-step plan: get up earlier than the chronically late Marinette.

Sadly, her parents probably wouldn't have to ask why she'd be setting five different alarms...because she was almost as bad of an over-sleeper as Marinette. Almost.

Oh, but before that, she had an obligatory text to send...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Home safe! Whew!]

 **The Pun Master:** [Awesome :3

 **The Pun Master:** [Hey, quick question...how's communication with Marinette going?]

* * *

Sarah face-planted on her bed, and groaned heartily into the soft textiles before replying. She still hadn't watched the stupid video yet, so in order for her story to run smoothly she would have to get just a _little_ more creative...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [...okay, confession time...back when I managed to convince LB to play along with my little act...I told her where I got my costume from...and apparently she's really good at finding people...]

 **The Pun Master:** [SHE TALKED TO MARINETTE?!]

 **Sarah:** [Probably because she couldn't find ME...you were right, avoiding her MIGHT have made things worse...T.T]

 **The Pun Master:** [You have my sincere condolences...]

 **Sarah:** [Depending on what all was on that video footage (I'm going to have to watch that at some point, ugh...), I might have been able to make something up to Marinette...but, well, now she has it straight from the source that LB definitely did NOT ask me to run around on rooftops dressed as her...aaaaaand so...yup, I haven't exactly been eager to reply to her texts...]

* * *

Adrien face-palmed.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [YOUR cover is safe, don't worry. The story I gave Marinette to convince her not to bust me the first time still stands. As for LB, she's not going to expose my first act either, I know THAT for sure at least. So YOUR secret is still safe, okay?

 **Sarah:** [As for me...I KNOW neither of them would risk going public because Hawkmoth could hear about it (LB was really worried about that last time), but they MIGHT get the idea to talk to my parents...they STILL don't know that I was "busted as Ladybug", so that itself might be enough to get me deported early...o.o]

 **The Pun Master:** [...if your parents find out, wouldn't keeping the costume be moot point?]

 **Sarah:** [...if either of them threaten to tell my parents...I will probably surrender the suit...but I'm REALLY hoping neither of them would risk it...]

 **The Pun Master:** [You should probably talk to them BEFORE they get the idea.]

 **Sarah:** [I really hate logic today...T.T]

* * *

She still didn't want to face Marinette's fury anytime soon, but putting it off _too_ long would probably be a bad idea...

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [You should probably make it easier for LB to track you down. Does she know where you live?]

 **Sarah:** [...if she didn't before, I'd bet she does now...]

 **The Pun Master:** [May I suggest waving a white flag on that rooftop near your apartment?]

 **Sarah:** [...I suppose I should consider it...]

 **The Pun Master:** [And you should PROBABLY reply to Marinette's texts...just saying.]

 **Sarah:** [. I know...still, easier said than done...]

 **The Pun Master:** [We have school tomorrow.]

 **Sarah:** [Fully aware, and fully terrified. *cringing emoticon*]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well, I guess I'll leave you to it. Goodnight, Sarah.]

 **Sarah:** [Goodnight, Adrien.]

* * *

Allowing herself a few more groans into her bedding, she finally subjected herself to reading the entirety of Marinette's texts (after un-checking the "send read receipts" in her phone's settings...she preferred to have it on most of the time, but she could always switch it back later).

She was almost through it all when Adrien suddenly sent her another text.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [You mentioned Nooroo!]

* * *

She thought back, and realized she had. Alya's phone must have caught that part of her conversation with the Akuma.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Yeah...Plagg mentioned him to me before, and I was pretty desperate...was that bad?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well...there aren't exactly a lot of ways you could know that name...has Ladybug asked about it yet?]

* * *

Ugh! Marinette either hadn't noticed yet, or Tikki had covered for her again...not that she could exactly explain the second option to Adrien...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [...maybe she skimmed over that part of the video?]

 **The Pun Master:** [What if she finds out later?]

 **Sarah:** [...I'll think of something. Maybe I could pretend I overheard an Akuma talking to Hawkmoth at some point...?]

 **The Pun Master:** [...that won't exactly help your case...]

 **Sarah:** [Look, don't even sweat it, okay? She might not even KNOW the Kwami's name, right?]

 **The Pun Master:** [...okay, point, I actually didn't know his name either until I asked Plagg just now...but she could still ask her Kwami about it just like I did!]

 **Sarah:** [Well, Plagg mentioned that LB's Kwami is really sweet. And REALLY smart. She might realize I MIGHT know your identity, and opt to keep quiet.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Bit of a stretch, don't you think?]

 **Sarah:** [REALLY smart.]

 **The Pun Master:** [And sorry to doubt you, but I HIGHLY doubt Plagg said that. He's not really big on complimenting others.]

* * *

Well, he hadn't, actually...

* * *

 **Sarah:** [It was implied? I'll agree, he mostly bad-mouthed the other Kwamis he mentioned...but when he talked about Tikki, there was a certain inflection that gave me the impression that he thinks very highly of her, you know?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, okay, I'll give you that, and it actually would make sense if My Lady's Kwami is as clever as she is. :3]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, clever bugs and cheesy cats?]

 **The Pun Master:** [...okay, for all the logic I've been throwing at you today, I suppose I had that one coming.]

 **Sarah:** [XD, cheesy or not, you're still cool, so don't sweat it.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol]

 **Sarah:** [Anyway, again, if LB DOES notice, I'll deal with it. Okay?]

 **The Pun Master:** [Alright, alright...Goodnight, for real this time. ;3]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, Goodnight! ^_^]

* * *

Sarah never did figure out how to actually reply to Marinette's texts, and instead hesitantly sent a simple message.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Meet me on a rooftop near my apartment Sunday?]

* * *

Despite how late it was, Marinette sent a reply before Sarah could safely put her phone away.

* * *

 **Terrifying Twintails:** [WE ARE TALKING TOMORROW!]

* * *

Well, she'd tried. Back to step one again. She was _definitely_ setting those five alarms, _and_ packing a lunch to avoid being vulnerable to capture in the afternoon, _and_ taking a change of clothes to disguise herself with after school to avoid being spotted on the way home.

Contrary to what Marinette might believe, Sarah _did_ have a strong sense of self-preservation, thank you very much.

…

As it turned out, Sarah woke up well before her second alarm thanks to a significantly terrifying nightmare where Marinette's pigtails became animated vines that shot out to grab her, and-...that's where she woke up. (It was really scary, okay?!)

So, yes, thanks to that really freaky dream (which may have been Karma's response to the obnoxious nickname she'd given Marinette in a weak attempt to make her seem slightly less frightening...hah, yeah, _that_ worked...), Sarah _did_ manage to make it to school before Marinette did. Go figure.

However, this came at the price of Alya dragging her aside to watch the video of the fight the day before, and Sarah was forced to act innocently curious when all she wanted to do was cringe. Still, it was definitely better than the alternative.

"Did she _seriously_ just say that?!" Sarah feigned shock as she watched herself try to appease the Akuma.

"Yup!" Alya laughed, "And listen to her go! Whoever this girl is, she's _crazy_ good at stalling!"

Okay, maybe this situation wasn't _all_ bad.

"But what I don't get is this "Nooroo" she mentions. I've never heard of him before, but it sounds like he's an actual person associated with Hawkmoth? Do you know anything about this?" Alya asked.

Of _course_ Alya hadn't missed that little detail. Ugh.

"Er...complicated _and_ classified..." Sarah did cringe.

"Oooh! So, this girl isn't just an ordinary cosplayer, is she?!" Alya grew excited.

"I suppose," Sarah laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck, "You make it sound like the Ladybug that day knew who she was, in any case...maybe this was a retired Ladybug like me, or maybe even a current Ladybug who wanted to do more when it wasn't her turn...?"

"Oh wow! I didn't even think of that last one! Good call!" Alya hurriedly scribbled down a few notes.

"Whoa, whoa, _whoa_! You almost got blasted!" Sarah gaped at the explosion on screen.

"Oh, yeah, it happens," Alya shrugged.

Holy cripes! _Where_ was this girl's sense of self-preservation?!

"I feel bad now, I thought she was just new to the role or something. I didn't realize all she had was that tiny smoke bomb and a toy yo-yo," Alya sighed, frowning as her past-self lectured the terrified Dopplebug.

"She probably should have just come out and admitted she was a fake," Sarah pointed out, struggling not to make a face as she said it.

"Yeah, but I'm guessing she had a reason," Alya said, "See, when I called her out on it, she tried to block the camera. She didn't want people to figure it out."

"Or maybe just Ladybug..." Sarah pretended to realize.

"Maybe!" Alya agreed.

Sarah couldn't help but wince as Dopplebug attempted to fight the Akuma with the yo-yo...and tensed at all that followed.

"Don't worry, girl, she makes it out," Alya patted her shoulder.

"Still, _ouch_ ," Sarah hissed appreciatively.

"Yeah, that's gonna bruise," Alya agreed.

"Wow, quick thinking!" Sarah complimented.

"Thanks, I'm not sure how long it would have held him back though," Alya sighed in relief as Ladybug saved the day, "Thank God for Ladybug!"

"Hey, you just ran out onto the battlefield to pull that girl out of harm's way, so kudos to you!" Sarah nudged her with her elbow.

Alya chuckled, blushing a little at the praise. If nothing else, Sarah was glad watching the video with Alya had given her the chance to partially express her gratitude.

"Good morning. Ah, the video from yesterday?" a familiar voice asked, cat-ching their attention.

"Yup, you've seen it?" Alya beamed at the two new arrivals.

"Indeed, I have," Adrien smiled, "Good work out there."

"I'm just glad it was the _stairs_ that got blasted, and not _you_ , babe," Nino took his seat.

"Apparently reporters are impervious to terror," Sarah teased.

"Taking that as a _compliment_ ," Alya smirked.

Sarah groaned good-naturedly, then returned her attention to the video, watching as the heroes "wrapped up" the show.

"And I had my camera on Ladybug, but the _moment_ those stairs were fixed, that girl was running," Alya commented, "Just wait till you see Ladybug's reaction!"

Sarah shared a flicker of a glance with Adrien, "Well, based on your earlier description-"

"Shh! Here it comes!" Alya shushed her.

As expected, Ladybug's next words sent cold shivers down Sarah's bruised spine.

"And that's pretty much it," Alya stopped the video, "So you see what I mean, right? _Super_ p*ssed."

"I'll say," Sarah chuckled uneasily, "Whoever that girl was, it looks like she ticked off the same Ladybug that grabbed my ear after I blew my cover...she has my sympathies..."

"Oooh! You never mentioned that before!" Alya was immediately interested.

Sarah moaned into her hands, "...maybe I'll tell you about it after I'm a little less traumatized, okay?"

"It can't have been _that_ bad..." Nino commented, but there was a hint of uncertainty.

Sarah looked up to answer, and found a pair of frigid ocean-blues glaring daggers at her, from right behind Nino.

"...uh...no comment..." Sarah laughed nervously, "Well, looks like class is about to start, I'm just gonna go to my seat, so talk to you guys later. Morning, Marinette!"

It came out just a _wee_ bit fast, but at least she didn't stutter.

"Morning, Sarah!" the response passed clenched teeth and a forced smile, but Marinette's tone didn't give her away.

Sarah could have sworn that lasers were branding her back as she slunk away to her seat.

Marinette forced a practiced smile for Alya and Nino, but Adrien saw her glowering at Sarah when she thought no one else was looking. Too late Marinette noticed he'd been watching her, and she _very_ quickly plastered on an awkward smile, and busied herself looking at her notes. Sarah, seated by that time, smiled sheepishly at Adrien's worried look, and watched as he discretely pulled his phone out under his desk.

Feeling the tall-tell vibration in her pocket, she just as discretely followed suit.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [She looks mad. o.o]

 **Sarah:** [Yup.]

 **Sarah:** [Hey, can I ask you a HUGE favor?]

 **The Pun Master:** [What?]

 **Sarah:** [After class, could you strike up a conversation with her? Just long enough to give me a running head start?]

 **The Pun Master:** [...PLEASE tell me you're not still avoiding her...]

 **Sarah:** [I know, I know! But she's really mad right NOW...T.T...I'm hoping if I give her a little time, she'll cool down...and she's TERRIFYING!]

 **The Pun Master:** [And you want me to face true terror for you, huh?]

 **Sarah:** [Why are YOU scared of her? It's ME she's mad at!]

 **The Pun Master:** [I never said I was scared!]

 **Sarah:** [But you totally are.]

 **The Pun Master:** [I'm just a little HESSITANT to place myself in someone's warpath. -_-]

 **Sarah:** [You totally think Marinette is scarier than an Akuma, don't you?]

* * *

She saw his shoulders go up in what could only be a guilty cringe. It was so easy to tease him when it came to that girl, with or without the mask.

* * *

 **The Pun Master:** [She is one of the sweetest girls I know!]

 **Sarah:** [Except when she's really REALLY mad...]

 **The Pun Master:** [On that note, PLEASE DON'T MAKE HER SO MAD SHE GETS AKUMATIZED!]

 **Sarah:** [I trust her to be smarter than that, and I AM trying to avoid angering her further...^_^;]

 **The Pun Master:** [I hope so...outside of the two of us, she's the only one in our class who hasn't been Akumatized, and I'd really like to keep it that way.]

 **Sarah:** [Me too. Akumatized Marinette would be the downfall of us all...o.o]

 **The Pun Master:** [Not funny :(]

 **Sarah:** [Not joking. -_-]

 **The Pun Master:** [You're going to give me nightmares.

 **The Pun Master:** [Seriously.]

 **Sarah:** [Okay, okay!

 **Sarah:** [Stopping!]

* * *

Speaking of nightmares...Sarah shivered at the memory.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I'm actually psyching myself out too, NEW TOPIC PLEASE!]

 **The Pun Master:** [Right, you want me to act as a distraction?]

 **Sarah:** [PLEASE!]

 **The Pun Master:** [...alright, how about this? Think you could help me out with my History homework later today?]

 **Sarah:** [If you can keep the "true terror" off my heels for the day, I will DO your History homework for you.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, meet me in the Library after lunch?]

 **Sarah:** [As long as Marinette doesn't grab me before I can get there (and I know, you want me to talk to LB ASAP, but I found a way to dodge her for today at least...), then yes. ^_^]

 **The Pun Master:** [And this is the part where the black cat wishes you good luck. ;3]

 **Sarah:** [The ironic well-wishing is much appreciated, and returned in full. ^_^]

 **The Pun Master:** [Thanks, I just might need it. o.o]

 **Sarah:** [Somehow I think you'll do just fine, lol.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Lol, here's hoping! :3]

* * *

As long as he didn't chicken out, his job would be embarrassingly easy. When would that oblivious boy realize _exactly_ what sort of affect he had on poor Marinette?

…

It _was_ embarrassingly easy. Sarah slipped out behind Nathaniel when class ended without a problem, and Marinette never found the chance to pounce.

She hunkered down behind her favorite bush (which was a _little_ sparse that time of year, but it did the job), and waited until she _saw_ Marinette leave. Then she kept waiting. She watched when Ladybug left Marinette's balcony (how people _never noticed_ this habit of hers was beyond Sarah), and flew off in the direction of Sarah's home, probably hoping to catch Sarah at some midway point.

Now knowing it was safe, Sarah left her secret hiding place, and hurried to her locker. With her packed lunch in hand, all she had to do was lie low until next class, and she would be safe at _least_ until school ended for the day.

She found a quiet spot with a good vantage, and ate her lunch while keeping her eyes peeled for trouble. Any classmate could be a potential hazard, if Marinette dared to ask around for her.

The quick trip to the restroom after she finished her lunch was possibly the most heart-pounding trip to a restroom she could ever recall...if you excluded that one class camping trip a few years ago, anyway. She could still remember with perfect clarity how the wood floorboards had squeaked, and the screeching sound of the water facet. Power outages during an overnight trip were so obnoxiously cliché, and then they actually _happened_ to you. Also, ghost stories in the dark were a _terrible_ idea, and people should seriously figure that out and _stop doing it_.

Terrifying restroom experiences aside, Sarah safely made it to the Library without seeing any sign of trouble, and found a secluded table that was mercifully free of students. She then proceeded to hide under the table until Adrien arrived. Plagg snickered after she bumped her head on the underside of the table on the way out of hiding, finding that and Adrien's startled jump adequately amusing.

The two teens chuckled at each other, and then set down their books to get to it. Soon she began to relax, knowing that Marinette would never approach her with Adrien around even if she did find them there. She also knew that if Marinette tried to be clever, she could trust that Adrien wouldn't be _that_ easy to lure away.

Now more at ease, she began to notice that Adrien was way more on top of his History homework than she'd assumed. She was receiving more help than she was giving, and it was slightly vexing.

Sarah had forgotten that Adrien's mask was more deceptive than any sort of magical disguise, and, due to focusing on the textbook, she failed to notice a slight change in his domineer.

"... _so_..." he drawled out, eying her from the side, "...when were you going to tell me you know who Ladybug is?"

As if her bulging eyes weren't enough of a dead give-away, Sarah fell right out of her chair.

…

She really should have known that Adrien _never_ needed help with homework. Big mistake.

…

Chapter End

* * *

NO PLACE IS SAFE SARAH! NO PLACE IS SAFE! XD

My idea is that "Super Strong" was a weight-lifter whose nerdy friend/sibling/frenemy dismissed his amazing muscles because he didn't have "super powers". Just keeping it simple, lol.

Is Sarah superiorly dumb for trying to avoid Marinette? Yup. Is this going to come back to bite her? Oh yeah. But can you really blame her for trying?

And Sarah really needs to be more on guard around Adrien. For goodness sakes, girl, stop underestimating the fact that he's a freaking cat! SNEAK ATTACKS ARE HIS SPECIALTY!

And yes, I decided that Sarah gives her friends silly nicknames on her phone. Hope you don't mind, lol.


	4. At Least It Wasn't Your Phone

Chapter 4: At Least It Wasn't Your Phone

"Are you okay?" Adrien asked, but if that wasn't a hint of a knowing smirk she saw on his face then Sarah didn't know anything anymore.

And a certain traitor was snickering _heartily_ in Adrien's bag.

"Okay, since _when_ do I know who Ladybug is?" she demanded, frowning at him as she reclaimed her chair with whatever remaining dignity she had.

"You tell me," he laced his fingers under his chin as he leaned forward, that obnoxious hint of a smirk growing steadily by the millisecond.

" _What_ in the _world_ makes you _think_ I know?" she gave her best dead-pan sass.

"Don't beat a dead cat, Sarah."

"I didn't realize the curiosity finally offed you," she snarked, "You must have _really_ yowled up the wrong tree."

"I do believe _some-buggy_ is protesting too much."

"And you must be _kitten_ , because I'm not hearing any proof," she briefly held a hand to her ear, as if listening intently for said proof.

"It's more of a hunch, really," he shrugged nonchalantly, but he was still smirking at her, "But, you know, animal instincts and all, I'm _purrobably_ right."

Sarah groaned, flopping all the way back in her seat, "There's no way I can _prove_ I don't know who she is...your accusations are unfair!"

"Just tell me you don't know who she is."

Sarah smirked, "I don't know who she is."

It most certainly wasn't a lie if she was just doing as she was told.

Adrien frowned, "So really you don't know who she is?"

Okay, _now_ she had to cross her fingers, "I-"

"Hands where I can see them," he pointed at her accusingly.

Gosh dang it.

Holding up her hands, she rolled her eyes, "Look, how on _Earth_ could I have figured it out if she doesn't even go to our school?"

"Ah hah!" he said, startling her, "You _know_ she doesn't go to our school because you know who she is!"

She had _not_ seen that one coming, "...uh..."

Adrien grinned excitedly, and Plagg was positively _guffawing_.

Sarah finally just double-face-palmed, and groaned, "...I'm not going to be able to convince you otherwise, am I?"

"Nope," he popped.

"Awesome," she groaned again, "As if she doesn't have plenty of _other_ reasons to off me right now..."

Adrien rolled his eyes, "It's not like you told me her identity."

"And I'm not giving you any more hints, kitty-cat," Sarah huffed, dropping her hands.

"I know, I know, I'm not going to disrespect her wishes," he raised his hands to assure her, "Just..."

"Just?" Sarah raised a brow in suspicion.

"...just _little_ things?" he hedged.

"Can't you ask _her_ about little things?"

"Sometimes...but she's very tight lipped," he pouted.

"For good reason. Sometimes it's the _little_ things that give you away, you know," she smirked at him.

A furrowed brow added to his pout, as he grunted in a small acknowledgement, but then he looked up at her again, "What about a...less small thing?"

"I'm not sure how that's any better..." she frowned.

"...do you...happen to know..." he squirmed a little, "...if she...might, you know... _fancy_ anyone...?"

Of _course_ he was going to ask that.

" _Adrien_..." Sarah groaned, mentally groaning again at the irony of her response.

"I'm _dying_ to know," he begged, giving her the sad-kitten eyes.

Sarah was not strong enough.

"...the only boy she ever talks about is you, BUT!" she pointed her index finger at him sharply, causing him to jump slightly, "She does _not_ see Chat Noir romantically. I swear on all I believe in that she _does_ care for you deeply, but right now she's only going to look at Chat Noir as her _partner_. And I _highly_ doubt you can persuade her to think otherwise until _after_ Hawkmoth is stopped for good, do you understand me? Bad guy first, _then_ try to sweep her off her feet. Don't push your luck, be _patient_...and I have a feeling that things will work out in your favor, okay?"

"...but you think I have a _shot_?" he inquired seriously.

Sarah let her forehead fall to the tabletop, groaning, "What did I _just_ say?"

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Get the Butterfly Miraculous back," not bothering to raise her head, she raised one finger, then a second one, "Convince Ladybug it's time to share identities, because Hawkmoth can't brainwash you anymore and she's only shooting herself in the foot if she tries to maintain identity secrets after that, and _finally_..."

She raised the third finger, and looked up to give him a serious look, "When you've covered those two hurtles, _then_ I think you have a shot. A really, _really_ good shot, okay?"

He considered that for a few minutes in silence. Relaxing, Sarah righted herself in her seat, and turned her attention to their very neglected homework.

"...did she ever talk about me as Adrien?"

Her pencil flew out of her fingers and across the room, almost but not quite making it through the space between books and shelf, hitting something and tumbling back in an arc toward the floor, where it then proceeded to roll under the table. She couldn't have pulled that off again if she'd tried.

Sarah buried her face in her hands, groaning for the umpteenth time that hour. He'd caught her off guard, _again_. When was she going to learn?

"What did she say?" Adrien asked eagerly, her startled reaction leaving him confidant.

"...let me ask you something first..." Sarah chose a safer route, "...how many times has _Adrien_ interacted with Ladybug?"

"Uh, a few times..." he blushed a bit, rubbing the back of his neck again.

"Care to tell me about it?" she leaned forward with a suddenly spreading grin, "Did she heroically sweep you out of harm's way or anything?"

"...does shoving me into a bathroom count?" he replied with an embarrassed smile.

"Wha...?" she gaped, then snorted, "Okay, do I _want_ the details?"

"Well, there was an Akuma targeting my house," he said, "Well, my dad, specifically...so Ladybug was there to protect him, and me as well...I, um, had to pretend to be in the shower for a while so Chat Noir could make an appearance, but then Adrien needed to show face again, and Ladybug was there to escort me to the others-"

"From the shower?" Sarah questioned, brow raised.

"Uh, yeah," he chuckled.

She whistled, trying to imagine what poor fangirl Marinette must have been going through.

"Anyway, the army of minions broke in before she could escort me to where my dad was, so she threw me back in the bathroom and told me to stay there," he snorted, but then he grimaced, "The Akuma managed to get my dad, and took him elsewhere, so I didn't need to be two places at once after that...but everything was fine in the end."

"Yikes...that must have been scary," Sarah sympathized.

He shrugged, "A lot of Akuma attacks are."

"...well, back to you and _Ladybug,_ " Sarah said, waggling her eyebrows, "She protected you at your house, what about the other times?"

"First, she escorted me to my house, _then_ she protected me," he corrected, "Then another time...well, I was at the park with...um...did you ever hear about Lila Rossi?"

"The...girl who spread a bunch of lies?" Sarah asked, vaguely aware of who he was talking about. She'd never actually met the girl herself, and only knew of her through rumors.

"Yeah...I didn't know she was lying at the time," Adrien sighed, "We were talking, and suddenly Ladybug popped up...I'm not sure why she took it as far as she did, she usually isn't like that, but...Ladybug gave her a pretty hard time for spreading lies about being "friends" with her...I started to point out she'd gone too far, but then I remembered I was just Adrien, not Chat Noir, so I sort of blundered on that..."

"...do you think it was because she was worried about Hawkmoth targeting her?" Sarah inquired.

Adrien blinked, then considered it, "Huh, maybe...she told me it was because she didn't like it when people lied, especially when it concerned her...but she seemed more angry than concerned, I don't know...all I know is she apologized very sincerely to Lila afterwards."

"Well, that's a relief," Sarah commented.

"Though...that was _after_ Lila was Akumatized..." Adrien cringed.

Sarah cringed too, "...because Ladybug snapped at her?"

"Yeah..." Adrien continued to cringe, "I think the saddest part is that Lila is still holding a grudge, last I heard..."

"That bad?" Sarah asked.

"Well, she did get really mad at anyone who called her out on her lies after that too. Mad enough to get Akumatized _again_ before she transferred back to Italy," Adrien added, "I still think Ladybug could have handled the situation better, a _lot_ better, but Lila..."

"Has some serious issues?" Sarah suggested.

Adrien sighed, "Pretty much."

"Alright, back on topic...sounds like that was a _less_ pleasant interaction between you and Ladybug..." Sarah grimaced.

"I saw her again later, while Lila was Akumatized the first time," Adrien said, "Lila came to see me...and, uh, tried to claim we were dating...in front of Ladybug...God that was awkward..."

Sarah inhaled sharply, grimacing along with him.

"Right after that, Lila used an illusion of me to try and trick us into giving up our Miraculouses," Adrien went on, "I tried to tell Ladybug it couldn't be real, but she really believed it...she...well, she was ready to give up her Miraculous, because Lila was threatening to drop the fake me off the side of the Eiffel Tower...but I shattered the illusion before she could."

Sarah whistled again, "Whoa, okay..."

"After we defeated the Akuma, Ladybug went back to check on me, to make sure I was okay...I had to pretend I was in the shower again..." he winced.

Sarah laughed a little at the last part, "Well...it sounds like she cares about you as Adrien too, don't you think?"

"Did she actually ever say that?" Adrien asked, eager to know.

"...she _might_ have left me with the impression that she has a high opinion of Adrien," Sarah suggested with a smirk, "But to know for sure, you'll have to find out from _her_ , okay?"

"...you tried to be _sneaky_ , saying I was the _only_ boy she talked about..." Adrien pouted.

"I almost slipped it past you, didn't I?" she grinned, " _Ladybug_ doesn't know Adrien and Chat Noir are the same, but _I_ do."

He held the pout for a moment longer, but then relaxed, smiling a little, "Well...at least that means my only competition is myself, right?"

"Well, yeah...but if you try to pull something with Ladybug as Adrien, I guarantee you'll have a serious problem," she warned, dead serious, "If you _somehow_ managed to win over Ladybug as Adrien...either you're both lying to each other _constantly_ and both suffering for it, or you tell her the truth and she either gets super mad at you or she realizes she _can't_ tell you who she is and has to suffer in silence, or both, or you _don't_ tell her and she makes the mistake of telling _you_...and then if Chat Noir gets brainwashed again that could come out in the most _horrible_ way on top of exposing her identity to Hawkmoth...and then there's the problem if Hawkmoth finds out about Ladybug and Adrien and he targets Adrien, which would probably only happen if you and Ladybug are both lying to each other, but if Adrien gets kidnapped and there's no Chat Noir...yeah, _not_ a nice way to find out...have I missed any of the issues with this scenario?"

"...no, I think you've made your point..." Adrien grimaced, "Adrien approaching Ladybug: _bad_ idea."

Sarah sighed, deflating back into her chair, "Okay, I think I can relax a little then... _told_ you I was paranoid..."

Adrien snorted, and laughed a little, "Well, if it keeps me from _majorly_ messing things up with Ladybug, I'm grateful."

Smiling a little, Sarah sat upright, "Alright, _now_ can we work on homework?"

"You might need to get your pencil first," he smirked.

She stuck her tongue out at him before ducking under the table to find it. Sure, he _looked_ like a picture-perfect sunshine child, and he was, but he was also an obnoxious cat. She was going to have to work on her tease-resistance and build up her guard a bit more if she was going to keep hanging out with him like this.

"...oh, wait, I forgot to ask," Sarah realized, having safely recovered her pencil, "What _exactly_ led you to believe I knew who Ladybug was?"

"Well...last night it was bugging me how she'd figured you out so easily, when _supposedly_ you'd only met the one time, so I was watching that video...and then I realized."

"Realized...what?" Sarah blinked.

"The only thing that really gave you away as being anyone other than a random cosplayer was when you mentioned Nooroo," he said, "Something that she wouldn't have related to you unless she already knew you knew, and why would she have talked to you about Kwami unless she had a specific reason to...?"

Sarah face-palmed (with the hand that _wasn't_ holding a pencil, fortunately for her face), "I hate logic today too."

Only with _her_ luck could someone find the wrong logical explanation and still get the right answer.

"So, I thought back to a few things, and it turned out quite a number of things supported this theory!" he went on.

"Like the fact I knew where she _wasn't_ when I ran around on rooftops?" Sarah chuckled.

"I really should have questioned that more," he shook his head, amused.

"Alright, alright, enough chit-chat. _Homework_."

"Ah..."

"...okay, what is it?" she sighed, lightly setting her pencil down.

"...how did you find out?" he asked.

"...can't tell you the details, but it was definitely _not_ on purpose," Sarah promised, "Hit us both like a ton of bricks."

Even if the brick-hitting happened in completely different time-frames.

"It...made it easier to find out your secret, knowing hers," she bent the truth some more, "I got the suit and yo-yo because I wanted to help her protect her secret...and when we got sealed in that classroom, I was worried that she might need you to win against the Akuma...you guys are a team, after-all, you _need_ each other...so...yeah, I did what I thought was right, and made up a bunch of elaborate stories to keep people guessing."

He patted her shoulder, "And I'm glad you did."

She looked down, smiling.

"And...if anyone had to know our identities, I'm glad it was you," he said.

She covered her now flushing face, "Ugh! You're doing it again!"

"Told you I'd get you back for last time," he smirked, "I'm a cat of my word!"

"I shall never doubt you again," she groaned.

He laughed, and then tried to appease her by returning their attention to the homework. When it was finally time for class, she had already forgiven the "cruelty".

…

Marinette was understandably furious when Sarah managed to give her the slip _again_ after school. She'd almost had her too! When she'd realized Adrien was apparently _interested_ in talking to her that day (which under normal circumstances would have been reason enough for her to forget everything else, and earlier that day she _had_ forgotten everything else for just a few minutes too long) she had made sacrifices for the greater good by running out of the classroom with a very abrupt "talk to you guys later, bye!" before _anyone_ could distract her, and had hidden herself outside the front of the school, waiting for Sarah to just _try_ and sneak past her.

Sarah had changed her clothes! The nerve! AND MARINETTE HAD ALMOST BEEN FOOLED! If Sarah hadn't made the mistake of trying to sneak behind the very bush Marinette was using, which gave Marinette a _very_ clear view of the girl's face, sunglasses or not, she just might have missed her!

Much to Marinette's regret, she had been too dumbfounded to attempt to grab Sarah before the girl had shot out of the bushes like a bird gone berserk, startling a fair number of students. If only she had grabbed Sarah then! If only!

By the time Marinette had found a less awkward time to escape the bushes (because having people wonder _why_ someone had been running away from her so desperately was not something she wanted to deal with at the current time) Sarah had managed to vanish into some unknown direction.

This was absolutely ridiculous! Why couldn't Sarah just take responsibility for her actions and _admit_ she'd done something _incredibly_ stupid?!

And after discovering the fact that Sarah apparently _liked_ running around on rooftops wearing that _accursed_ costume (that Marinette very much regretted _ever_ making), Marinette was now willing to bet half her fabric inventory (the _good_ half) that all the recent claims of Ladybug being where _she_ most certainly _wasn't_ had been caused by Sarah. It had finally come back to her that Sarah had said, _explicitly_ , that she had wanted to use the costume to _confuse_ people, and that was _exactly_ what she had been doing! AND SARAH HAD ALMOST GOTTEN HERSELF TURNED INTO A _SPLAT_ BECAUSE OF IT!

God, if she hadn't made it there in time...SHE WAS GOING TO HAVE NIGHTMARES AFTER THIS G*DD*MM*T! Wasn't it bad enough she had to deal with her two _best friends_ constantly being under threat because of all these d*mn Akuma?! Chat Noir was _always_ taking hits for her (because he was a self-sacrificing idiot, and _apparently_ Hawkmoth had recognized the pattern and thus had EVERY. D*MN. AKUMA. go after _her_ first and foremost, and thus kill two birds with one stone), and Alya just _couldn't_ seem to figure out what a "safe distance" was! So why did one of the most _helpless_ people she knew suddenly decide to _model_ their-self after _her_?!

Alright, sure, maybe Sarah wasn't _quite_ as clumsy as she had led their class to believe, but she _wasn't_ strong, _wasn't_ fast, and _clearly_ wasn't trained to defend herself! Her only defense was _bluffing_ , and that could only get you so far with a bunch of blast-happy lunatics running after you!

And _regardless_ of whether Sarah's unwarranted actions had helped or not (which, much as Marinette hated to admit it, probably _had_ helped her out of a few scrapes), what she was doing was _wrong_. Sarah was _not_ a super-hero with magical powers, she was a _civilian_! And not only that, she was a _risk factor_ because she _knew things she wasn't supposed to know,_ and now Hawkmoth _knew_ there was someone around that knew too much (of _all_ the things Sarah and Tikki could have talked about while her back was turned, _why_ had _Hawkmoth's Kwami_ been the topic they chose?!), and if he ever managed to connect that back to _Sarah_...Marinette really, _really_ didn't want to think about it.

So yes, Marinette _was_ furious with Sarah, and Tikki's attempts to placate her were barely noticed. Sarah's request to speak to her on "Sunday" was most certainly _not_ soon enough, because this issue needed to be resolved _immediately_!

So, when she used Lucky Charm that night to help her "locate, isolate, and temporarily detain" Sarah, she was _surely_ justified, wasn't she?

…

The precautionary measure of keeping the curtains closed over her _locked_ bedroom window was not enough to deter red-clad super-heroines, as Sarah soon learned.

Sarah _also_ learned that she was a heavy enough sleeper to _sleep through Ladybug kidnapping her in the middle of the night_.

Alright, so Ladybug's _intent_ had been to wake her up first, but Sarah was, as mentioned, a bit of a heavy sleeper, and Ladybug hadn't been keen on accidentally waking her parents up...so Ladybug ended up waking her up on a nearby rooftop. So, on a very cold January night, Sarah found herself on a random rooftop, wearing only her pajamas and her blanket, with a very irate Ladybug standing over her, no Tikki to mediate, and no cellphone.

Now, Sarah could have risked lecturing Marinette about how utterly "un-hero-like" it was to kidnap people in the middle of the night, but, somehow, she didn't think that would go over very well.

"...I guess we're talking about this now, then..." Sarah winced, bracing herself.

"...I'm just going to _assume_ that you did not read my texts, and start over," Ladybug inhaled, "...I made it _very_ clear to you that I _never_ wanted you to wear that suit again..."

"I know," Sarah acknowledged.

"Did you not understand _why_?" Ladybug ground out.

"...you were worried about my safety..." Sarah hugged her knees, both for warmth and for emotional support, "...and the fact that I know your identity and could potentially be used against you...I knew that...that's why I was _very_ careful, and, outside of _yesterday_ , I never came _anywhere_ close to being snagged by an Akuma..."

"And all it took was _one_ exception for you to almost get yourself blasted to smithereens!" Ladybug snapped, "If I hadn't gotten there when I did, you would have been a _splat_ , and I do _not_ want to find out if Miraculous Cure can fix that or not, do you understand me?!"

"...I don't want to test it either..." Sarah winced, "...but I swear, if I'd _known_ the Akuma could fly I wouldn't have gone out yesterday! I made a mistake, I _know_! But I won't make the same mistake again! Please, I _know_ I'm helping you by being Dopplebug! Please don't tell me to stop! I'll be more careful from now on, I promise!"

Marinette was a sucker for puppy-dog eyes, and seeing them now did indeed make her resolve waver. However, she wasn't "Marinette" right now, she was _Ladybug_ , and Ladybug was no push-over.

"...you can't predict what new Akumas might be capable of," Ladybug said firmly, "And yesterday you made it _very_ clear to Hawkmoth that someone who is _not_ a wielder knows about Kwamis. You might have Alya running in circles, but Hawkmoth isn't going to be fooled. At this point he might be just one small epiphany away from realizing it was _you_ out there. Those two videos of you are all over the Internet now, so I have little doubt he's seen them. If he does put it all together, he's going to _know_ you're connected to us somehow, and he _will_ come after you."

Sarah looked down, knowing she was right, but frustrated non-the-less.

"I'm not going to let you give him any more reason to suspect you," Ladybug continued, "I want you to retire that costume for good. No more recklessness. Keep your head down, and don't do anything more that could attract attention, do you understand?"

"...I understand what you're saying...and I _don't_ want Hawkmoth coming after me, I swear..." Sarah collected her nerve, and stood, facing the heroine, "...but whether I risk my own neck or not is up to _me_ , isn't it?"

Ladybug looked stunned, unnerved for a moment, but her resolve returned soon enough, "It's my job to keep you _safe_ , Sarah."

A bitterness Sarah was barely even aware of then reared its ugly head, "Just because I'm not as amazing as you, doesn't make you _responsible_ for me!"

" _Excuse_ me?!" Ladybug gaped at her.

Somewhere deep in the back of her mind, Sarah _knew_ she was letting her emotions get the better of her, but there was no stopping it now, "You're a _hero_ , not my babysitter! I _get_ that you're worried about me because I'm just a wimpy teenage girl, but this fight against Hawkmoth is bigger than your worries about me! I'm worried about you and Chat Noir too! I don't _care_ how good you guys are, or how lucky you are, I still worry! And I'm worried about Tikki, Plagg, and Nooroo too! You're _all_ in danger because of Hawkmoth, and I can't just stand by and _watch_!"

"We are _trained_ to deal with this! You're _not_!" Ladybug argued, frustrated as well, "And I'm not telling you that you _can't_ help, but running around with my target on your back is not okay, Sarah!"

"But it helped! People _saw_ that you and Ladybug were in different places at the same time! I've even drawn an Akuma or two in the wrong direction when you were struggling! How is that wrong?!"

"Because I don't _want_ your help!" Ladybug snapped.

Sarah took a small step back, shocked and clearly hurt by the statement.

Ladybug immediately regretted her words, but she didn't take them back. Instead, she stood firm and kept going, "...I don't want your help anymore, Sarah. I'll be just fine without it."

Sarah didn't say a word, but every line in her face swore she was just one sharp inhale away from crying. Ladybug looked away, and waited a few minutes before speaking again.

"...it's late, I'll take you back to your room."

"...no."

Ladybug looked at her in confusion.

This time, Sarah was looking away, "I don't _want_ your help."

Ladybug cringed, "Sarah, you'll _freeze_ if you stay out here all night."

"It's not like I _asked_ to be here," Sarah retorted.

Ladybug looked indignant, but, unlike earlier, she wasn't quite sure how to justify herself for dragging Sarah out onto a random rooftop. The whole thing suddenly felt incredibly juvenile.

"...look, I'm sorry I dragged you all the way out here...I just didn't want to wake your parents," Ladybug admitted.

"My window was _locked_."

Ladybug cleared her throat, looking away in discomfort.

"...just go home, I'll be _just fine without your help_."

Being forced to face the unfairness of her prior statements made Ladybug flinch, and she was tempted to take it all back. She considered it, and came close to following through.

...but if she did, then she would lose her argument, and this was the closest she had come to convincing Sarah to stop her reckless behavior. So instead, she decided to test Sarah's stubbornness. Surely Sarah wouldn't _really_ stay out on a rooftop all night just to spite her.

"...last chance, either I help you off this roof now, or I'm going home," Ladybug crossed her arms.

Sarah just raised her chin, "I don't want your help."

Ladybug pursed her lips at the defiance, but turned away, "Fine then, goodnight."

And then she swung away, leaving Sarah alone on the roof. Ladybug found a shadowed place not too far away, and looked back.

Sarah tried the door to the roof entrance, but it was locked and when she knocked she received no answer. She looked over the outer walls, but the roof was a _teensy_ bit higher than she was used to scaling, plus she wasn't dressed for it, so she decided to listen to her better judgment and not test her luck.

So, she found the least drafty spot, pulled her blanket close, and curled up to conserve heat. At least her blanket was of a decent thickness, so she highly doubted she would freeze to death. So long as she didn't fall asleep, and kept her digits and facial features covered, she would be fine until morning. When it was light out people would be able to see her up there and she could get someone to unlock the door to the roof.

She knew that Ladybug _probably_ wouldn't leave her up there that long though. Most likely Ladybug would break and help her despite the refusal. She wouldn't have been surprised to learn that Ladybug was still watching over her at that moment.

Ladybug managed to wait approximately 38 minutes. Sarah heard her approach.

"I still don't want your help!" Sarah called out through the blanket, carefully avoiding biting her tongue with her slightly chattering teeth.

"Sarah, please, this is ridiculous," Ladybug frowned at the bundle.

"I could say the same to you!"

"At least let me help you down to the sidewalk so you can walk home."

"No."

Ladybug growled, and almost followed through with her urge to just scoop up the stubborn bundle of blankets and deal with the repercussions later. Almost.

"Fine!" Ladybug snapped, and swung off again.

…

Less than an hour later, _Chat Noir_ landed lightly down on the roof, and once he had the bundle of blankets in sight, he padded over to it.

"Sarah?" he asked, a little uncertain.

She jumped at the sound of his voice, and popped her head out of the blankets in surprise, "Ch-Chat? Wh-what are you...?"

"Uh...Ladybug called me..." he rubbed the back of his neck.

"...oh," she said simply, rearranging her blankets to keep out the cold, and struggling to keep her teeth from chattering obviously, "...I didn't realize she could call you when you were out of suit..."

"Well, she can't really, but Plagg can sense it when she tries to contact me," Chat explained.

"Ah..." Sarah said simply, "...sorry if we woke you guys up."

"Don't worry about it," he waved the thought off, "But speaking of waking... _please_ tell me she didn't _break_ into your room..."

Sarah bit her lip, and cleared her throat, "...the...screen on my window was already broken, actually..."

Chat groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead, "I don't know what's worse: the fact that _you're_ defending her, or the fact that I'm not surprised she actually did that..."

Sarah snorted, "Well, at least love hasn't made you blind, kitty-cat...and I _did_ complain to her about it, but I think I pushed her too far by avoiding her, you were right."

He sighed, and dropped his hand, "...I don't know the details...but Ladybug said you refused to let her take you home."

"...I know it's childish, but if she doesn't want my help, then I don't want hers either," Sarah asserted, glowering at her knees.

"...but that doesn't apply to me, right?"

Sarah grimaced, "...not _precisely_ , but she _did_ call you to act on her behalf..."

"But I would help you even if she didn't ask."

"But you wouldn't have known if she hadn't told you," she pointed out stubbornly.

"Sarah."

"Chat," she retorted.

Chat pouted.

"...sorry, I guess I'm still grumpy..." Sarah deflated, "...it's her I'm mad at, not you...and it _is_ pretty dumb to refuse your help on such a minor technicality...sorry..."

He smiled a little, and offered her his hand.

Sarah sighed, taking the hand so he could help her stand, "Tell her she totally cheated by using Chat Noir's trademarked "Kitten Eyes" on me. That was very sneaky and underhanded, and it definitely doesn't count."

"Duly noted," he smirked, helping her hop onto his back, "Alright, hold on."

…

Fortunately, Ladybug had left the window unlocked, so Chat was able to return Sarah to her room without a fuss.

"Thanks, Chat," Sarah told him, "And I'm sorry again you got pulled into this."

"Don't worry about it," he said again, sitting on her window sill, "...and...I don't know what all she said to you...but you know it's only because she cares, right?"

Sarah looked down, "...I know...I was harsh with her for the same reason...I want to help you defeat Hawkmoth in any way I can, and if I don't use every method I can pull off, then...I just feel like it's not enough...so when she tries to tell me to stop using the suit, I...I just can't agree to it..."

Chat was sympathetic, "...well, I just hope you two can find some sort of middle ground soon...we're not going to get anywhere fighting each other when the enemy is Hawkmoth, you know?"

Sarah sighed, "Yeah, I know...and isn't it dumb that it's _his_ fault we're even having this fight? If not for him I wouldn't be doing things that make Ladybug antsy, and Ladybug wouldn't be so freaked out by what I've been doing..."

Chat nodded.

"...ugh, yes, we need to find middle ground and focus on defeating Hawkmoth, not let him pit us against each other..." Sarah made a sour face, "...I swear, if I ever get Akumatized, I'm _so_ going to kick his sorry butt!"

Chat Noir's jaw dropped, and then he nearly fell off the sill laughing. Sarah, momentarily confused, tried to figure out what she'd said that had him so tickled...and then laughed too when she realized it.

"If he's dumb enough to Akumatize you, I would love to see that!" Chat snickered.

"Do you think it actually works that way?" Sarah giggled.

Chat shrugged, managing to sit cross-legged on the window sill, "Well, if you get Akumatized because you're mad at _Hawkmoth_...I don't really see how he could turn that to his advantage."

Sarah laughed again.

Chat smiled, and uncrossed his legs to hop up on the sill, "Well, I think we should call it a night. See you Monday."

"Goodnight, see you Monday," Sarah returned.

…

Chat found Ladybug waiting for him on a nearby roof, and vaulted over to her.

"How is she?" Ladybug asked, worried.

"Ah, well..." he scratched the back of his neck, "...she said using "kitten eyes" is cheating, and she's still miffed, but I think she's cooled down a little..."

She let out a breath, "...thank you, Chat. I...I really owe you a proper explanation for all this..."

He held up a hand, "Don't sweat it, Bugaboo. I don't know what exactly happened between you and Sarah, but...all I care about is that you two find a way past it. If I can help with that in any way, just ask of me what you will, Milady."

Ladybug smiled softly.

"And I don't know about you-" he yawned, "But this cat needs his beauty sleep. Care to continue this conversation tomorrow?"

She chuckled, embarrassed, "Definitely. When and where?"

She would admit to him that Sarah knew her secret identity, and explain some of the crazy things Sarah had done for her sake...and Chat Noir would pretend to be surprised.

…

Sarah, quite predictably, woke up with a cold Saturday morning. She was mostly better by Monday, but Marinette and Adrien still winced every time she coughed, or attempted speaking.

Sarah and Marinette avoided each other for the most part the following week and a half, neither one quite willing to broach the still unresolved tension again just yet.

Then Wednesday rolled around, and hit the fan.

…

Sarah knew for a fact Marinette was baby-sitting Manon that day. If Marinette ever wondered how Sarah always knew these things, she would eventually realize that her general conversations with Alya were relatively easy to overhear.

So, Sarah _knew_ that Marinette needed help, _immediately_ , when a crazy Akuma popped up and began running around turning people into plant-zombies. There was no time to question their current standing or the Dopplebug elephant in the room. She called Marinette without delay.

Marinette, on the other hand, was not as eager for her help as Sarah might have thought.

"No!" Marinette shot the idea down almost before Sarah could finish voicing it, "The Vine is a minion-maker! If she catches you, there's no telling what might happen!"

"I can avoid her!" Sarah shot back, "There's no time to argue! You need an out, so just tell me where you need me!"

"Sarah, I can handle this just _fine_ on my own! Stay out of it!"

So, Sarah grit her teeth, and crossed a line.

"Either you let me babysit, or I'm playing distraction. Your choice."

Marinette sputtered unintelligibly.

"You have five seconds. Five. Four. Three-"

"GET YOUR _STUPID_ _BUTT_ OVER HERE _RIGHT_ _NOW_!"

"Ouch, Roger," Sarah winced as she held the phone away from her offended ear, "Your house then? I'll be over there ASAP."

"THIS ISN'T OVER!"

"Yeah, I know," Sarah sighed, "See you in a bit."

…

Sarah _did_ manage to avoid becoming a plant-zombie (Chat, not so much...), and kept Manon as well as Marinette's parents distracted while Marinette "went to do something on the balcony right quick". Afterwards, the two teens curtly said goodbye, and Sarah went straight home.

…

It was rather unfortunate that no one had warned Sarah about Marinette's...sticky fingers. Although she probably should have realized the potential hazard, considering Ladybug's job description entailed constant thievery of people's prized possessions. Less-than-stellar habits were bound to cross over to her civilian identity eventually.

And after being kidnapped only two weeks prior, Sarah _should_ have been fully aware that no mere lock could stop a bug on a mission.

So, all too soon, when an unsuspecting Sarah left her bag in the supposed security of her locker, Marinette found her chance. The polka-dot bandit and her concerned accomplice were in and out with time to spare.

…

When Sarah pulled her bag from her locker, and found it suspiciously light, a horrible sense of dread washed over her. She immediately ran to the bathroom and, once safe behind the walls of a stall, anxiously opened her bag. Much as she had feared, a few things were not as they should have been.

Her suit? Gone. Her wig? Gone. Her gloves, earrings, yo-yo and smoke pellets? Gone, gone, gone, and _gone_. A little note in Marinette's handwriting? Tucked neatly in the very pocket everything _else_ should have been.

 _"I gave you the costume on the condition that you wouldn't use it for anything reckless. You broke your promise, so now I am temporarily confiscating these items. I will give them back after you move back to Ireland. End of discussion."_

Sarah very thoroughly shredded the note, perhaps more than necessary, and then flushed the mess down the toilet.

Hurt, anger, frustration, depression, and a few other emotions took their turns as she slumped against the stall door. You could say she was upset. Not upset enough to get Akumatized, she was _far_ too paranoid to let the negative emotions consume her enough for that, but she was most certainly _not_ a happy camper.

Sarah did _not_ want to get Akumatized, which made her even _more_ frustrated with Marinette's actions. Either Marinette trusted her a lot more than she would admit, or she'd failed to consider the possible consequences of her actions...and considering how Marinette was currently treating her like an irrational little kid, she highly doubted it was the former.

In any case, she knew it was a bad idea to dwell on her current issues with Marinette. So, she resolved to focus her anger on Hawkmoth alone. She sincerely doubted he could ever convince her to attack her friends when she all she wanted was to stand _with_ them. And on a lighter note, it _would_ be hilarious if Hawkmoth made the mistake of gifting power to someone who would _immediately_ try to use that power to defeat him. The mental image made her giggle again, despite the fact she knew it would probably _never_ happen...still, boo-ya! She was a freaking _expert_ on avoiding being used for evil. Take _that_ Hawkmoth. No freaking _way_ was that jerk ever going to Akumatize her now!

Despite her resolve...Sarah couldn't _quite_ quell her urge to glare daggers at Marinette for the rest of the day. Quite a turn-around of the previous several days, not that anyone seemed to notice, or care. Marinette carefully avoided looking toward the back row, and no one else had a reason to. Rose and Juleka were relatively preoccupied by a news article concerning Prince Ali, which Rose animatedly told her about after class, so they managed to miss the scowl that crossed her face whenever Marinette happened to appear in her line of sight. As for Sarah's bench-mate...he wasn't one to question such things, even if he _had_ noticed.

…

After school, collapsed in a dramatic heap on her bed, Sarah huffed for the umpteenth time, and begrudgingly pulled out her phone to text Adrien.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Hey...I figure I might as well let you know...Ladybug stole my Dopplebug gear...]

 **The Pun Master:** [She what?!]

 **Sarah:** [Yup. -_-]

 **The Pun Master:** [So she...just took it?]

 **Sarah:** [Yup. -_-]

 **The Pun Master:** [...are you okay?]

 **Sarah:** [I'm not going to get Akumatized over this.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Well that IS a relief, but are you OK?]

 **Sarah:** [I'm not happy right now. With Ladybug, or with Marinette...since I KNOW she was in on this too. So if you see me glaring at her in class...that's why.]

 **The Pun Master:** [Seriously?]

 **Sarah:** [Don't forget, Marinette wanted to stop me just as much as Ladybug did...so, yeah, apparently they joined forces to stop me. -_-

 **Sarah:** [Either Marinette helped Ladybug find my locker, or she swiped my gear in Ladybug's place, I'm not sure which...all I know for sure is my stuff is gone, and they left a note detailing why I'm not getting my stuff back. -_-

 **Sarah:** [Anyway, I just figured I'd let you know what happened, and I guess it helped to vent a little...]

 **The Pun Master:** [I'm glad you told me. And I'll always be happy to lend an ear if you need it.]

* * *

Sarah's irritation quickly melted away, and she smiled softly.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Thanks, kitty-cat. You're the best pun-obsessed friend a girl could ask for. ;D]

 **The Pun Master:** [:3]

* * *

Sometime after that, she would learn that Plagg found the entire situation _hilarious_ , and that he was more than happy to make fun of her whenever the opportunity arose. Adrien was not one to judge when Sarah's attitude toward Plagg suddenly became less than adoring.

…

One "close-call" Akuma attack later, and Sarah couldn't take it anymore. She begged and pleaded, but Marinette refused to give the suit back. Sarah tried talking to Adrien about it, asking him to defend her case as Chat Noir if he found the chance, but, in the end, it didn't help much.

Even if she bought a cheap Ladybug costume (of which anything she could afford would fool absolutely no one for longer than five seconds), she had no way to replace her yo-yo. That thing had cost her a _year'_ s worth of allowance, and though Marinette obviously felt guilty about it she remained adamant about not returning it.

She may have briefly considered asking Adrien for a loan, _very_ briefly, but it just seemed wrong on _way_ too many levels. So, instead, she came up with another, _slightly_ less morally questionable plan.

Perhaps she shouldn't have approached Adrien so obviously, but when the idea stuck she was feeling just a smidgen spiteful. She didn't want to _hurt_ Marinette, but...leaving her _squirming_ with curiosity sounded somewhat appealing.

"Hey, Adrien, do you mind if I talk to you about something?" Sarah ran up to Adrien right as class ended, "Alone, if that's okay?"

Adrien was just about to agree when a loud voice interrupted.

"Hah! _Look_ , Sabrina!" Chloe had raised her nose at the display, " _Someone_ has finally decided to confess her _hopeless_ crush!"

So _apparently_ people had begun to think she _liked_ Adrien. Well, okay, she _sort_ -of did (not that she would ever, _ever_ admit it), but that was _not_ why she hung out with the boy. Thankfully, Marinette still believed it was only because Adrien was a _huge_ Ladybug fanboy and that Sarah was just fangirling with him (which wasn't all that far from the truth), otherwise Sarah would have had a terrifying green monster to contend with.

The green monster before her now was _so_ much less threatening.

"Of course not, Chloe," Sarah blinked innocently, "I'm just dragging him off to lecture him on what a _terrible_ job he's doing at courting _you_."

Before the blond could respond, Sarah grabbed Adrien's arm and quickly rushed him out of the room. She couldn't help but grin as she heard the outbursts of laughter and one indignant shriek behind her. Chloe was probably going to get her back for that later, but for now revenge was perfectly satisfying.

"You're doing a _terrible_ job of courting that girl," Sarah teased as they headed to a quieter spot, avoiding the other students that were now milling around.

"Ha ha," he laughed sarcastically, then snorted, "Okay, what's this actually about?"

"Well...I think I figured out where Ladybug stashed my stuff," Sarah told him, after double-checking to make sure no one was close enough to hear them.

"Wha...oh...um..." Adrien was suddenly uncomfortable.

"Would you mind helping me on a covert mission to get it back?" she asked pleadingly, giving him a painfully hopeful look.

They both heard Plagg snickering in Adrien's bag.

"Er...do you _really_ need it back?" he asked, trying not to cringe.

"I _know_ I'm asking a lot, but you _know_ how much this means to me," Sarah pleaded, "I have half a year left to help you guys, and I want to make the most of it! You know my reasons, you know I'm careful, and you _know_ I'm making things just a _little_ safer for your Lady. _All_ I'm asking is that you drop me off on a roof, and then help me get back down afterwards."

It was an understandable reaction when he went rigid, "... _her_ roof?"

"Would I be asking you if it was?" she allowed a smirk, "No, I'm not going to let you figure her out _that_ easily. The thing is, I found out that she may have asked Marinette to hide my stuff at _her_ house."

That surprised him, "What? Why?"

"Well, Ladybug knows I'm aware of her secret identity, _and_ she trusts Marinette," Sarah pointed out, "Do you really think she's dumb enough to hide my stuff at her own house when she has _another_ perfect place to hide it?"

"Ooh~ sounds like she has good reason not to trust you!" came Plagg's muffled chortling.

Sarah scrunched her face mockingly at the bag, despite not knowing if the Kwami could see it. Leave it to Plagg to be obnoxious. Wasn't it bad enough he laughed _every_ time someone brought up her predicament?

Adrien thought about it, "...won't that get Marinette in trouble?"

"She'd only get in trouble with Ladybug if she gave it to me willingly, which she _definitely_ won't. She's _just_ as adamant as Ladybug," Sarah grit her teeth, resisting the urge to growl, "No, if I swipe it like this, Ladybug could only be mad at _me_."

"And me," Adrien looked to the skylight, depressed at the thought.

"I wouldn't tell her you helped me," Sarah promised, perking at the hint of relent, "I actually _could_ scale the building on my own...just...slowly...and people would probably notice me before I got to her balcony..."

He sighed, "You'd probably hurt yourself trying..."

"I've climbed three stories before!" Sarah insisted, "I could do it! Just...slowly! I could get away with it if the conditions were right!"

He frowned at her, "That is incredibly dangerous, Sarah."

"You've done way worse, Monsieur Take-The-Bullet," she crossed her arms defiantly.

"She has a point," Plagg threw in.

Adrien rolled his eyes.

"Look, I know you don't like it, but I _have_ been training so I could pull off Dopplebug better. I'm not doing it because I want to try and _be_ Ladybug, I just want to be able to fool someone for as long as necessary," Sarah insisted, "I _definitely_ don't want to tango with an Akuma again. We all saw how well _that_ turns out..."

"Maybe you shouldn't have _announced_ your only attack," Adrien smirked.

Sarah flushed, "I read that shouting confuses your opponent!"

"Not if you tell them _exactly_ what you're doing," he snickered.

"I panicked!" she retorted, "I never intended to actually face an Akuma! Especially not _that_ one! And he was about to _blast_ us right then, and I-!"

"Okay, okay," he raised his hands in surrender, realizing he was riling her up a little more than he'd meant to, "You did pretty well for your first fight."

"...and hopefully it was my last..." Sarah grumbled, "That was _humiliating_..."

"Half my fights are," he shrugged.

Her lips tugged upward, "And you're _miraculous_ for putting up with it."

He grinned broadly.

"Well, I think I've held you back long enough," Sarah noticed Nino waiting nearby, "I'll text you after school, give you some time to think about it."

"Okay...I'll think about it," he told her.

"Just tell her you'll do it and get it over with," his "bag" complained.

"Plagg!" Adrien hissed.

Sarah stifled a giggle, "Uh-oh, I think my hopes are raised now..."

Adrien groaned.

"You know I'm right," Plagg quipped, "You're a sucker for damsels in distress."

"Oh~!" Sarah dramatically flung the back of her hand to her forehead, pretending to swoon, "I need a _hero_ ~!"

" _Fiiiine_ ," Adrien gave up.

"Yay!" Sarah bounced in place, giggling.

Adrien shook his head, but he couldn't stay irritated for long in the face of a clearly happy friend, "Alright, text me the details. We'll work something out."

"You're the best!" she declared, joyously hugging him in her excitement. She released him before he could even fully process what had happened and skipped off with a grin and a wave, "Later!"

Finally recovering from the surprise, Adrien chuckled and walked over to where his curious friend was waiting.

" _Apparently,_ I'm a sucker for damsels in distress," Adrien joked.

"Uh-oh, what did you promise her?" Nino asked, torn between amusement and concern.

"Sorry, if I told you, she'd probably hunt down Ladybug and tell her I smell like dirty gym socks, or worse," Adrien shuddered at the thought.

Nino whistled, "Well, you sort of do sometimes...is _that_ why you shower all the time?"

"I don't shower all the time..." Adrien muttered, mentally growling at Plagg.

"Okay, okay, whatever you say, bro."

…

It was all very simple. Sarah had overheard Marinette and Alya making plans for a shopping trip the first day of their Winter Break, so she _knew_ a specific time that Marinette's room would be empty. For assurance, Sarah and Chat Noir hid nearby and waited until they _saw_ the girls leave the Bakery.

Then, when the coast was clear, Chat quickly delivered Sarah to the balcony. Fortunately for Sarah, Marinette didn't make a habit of locking her hatch (not that she didn't know how to pick a lock, but she would have felt embarrassed doing so with Chat there to see it).

"I'll be back as quick as I can. Don't peek in here," Sarah warned, knowing full well there could be any number of embarrassing things in Marinette's room that would _annihilate_ her if Adrien saw them.

"I've been here before, I might be able to help," he said.

"Nope. Thank you, but I'm not implicating you any more than this," Sarah asserted, "And if I end up sifting through an _underwear_ drawer-"

"Okay, okay!" he backed off immediately, flushing red.

She laughed a little, "Like I said, no peeking."

"I won't, I won't!" he replied quickly.

"Alright, I'll be back," she saluted before dropping down through the hatch.

It took her no time at all to notice _several_ things that Adrien did _not_ need to see. Poor Marinette had it _bad_.

Returning to her mission, she looked around for the most logical hiding spots. Marinette _definitely_ wouldn't want someone to accidentally come across a Ladybug suit in her room, so it _had_ to be in a place where someone like Alya or Sabine wouldn't find it.

Of course, this was _Marinette_ , one of the most creative people Sarah knew. She could have secret compartments _anywhere_. _Hello_ challenges, _please_ be on the lowest setting!

She checked around the bed first, but found no sign of her belongings, not even under the mattress. Soon after she checked under and between all the other structures and furniture in the room (she'd even felt up the chaise, as well as the walls, but was disappointed to find nothing). That left drawers, boxes, and a very large chest to check through. She _really_ hoped Marinette hadn't hidden it somewhere else in the building, because there was no _way_ she would have enough time to search the entire complex!

Sarah was on her last drawer when she heard sounds in the story below. The series of thuds up the stairs below came far too quickly for her to react fast enough. She was just whirling away from the vanity in surprise when the trap door flew open, and Marinette launched into the room.

"There it is!" Marinette cheered as she grabbed something off her desk, quickly scurrying back toward the exit.

She was just about to dart down the stairs when she finally noticed Sarah ducking down in the corner next to the vanity, desperately trying to blend into the shadows (which _might_ have been easier if the walls weren't bloody freaking _pink_ ).

For a few heartbeats, Marinette just gaped at the unbelievable sight of a human body dressed in all black hiding in her bedroom (that was _not_ Chat Noir, not that she would have expected to find _him_ in her room either). Sarah was desperately holding her hood down, thereby concealing her face...except her favorite bracelet was exposed by the action, and Marinette's eyes were highly trained to spot such details.

Still, even though she realized who it was, Marinette's brain was still whirling trying to comprehend the reason, "...why are you in my room?"

Sarah flinched, and hesitantly peeked out past the hood.

"What are you _doing_ here, Sarah?" Marinette's face scrunched up in confusion.

Tikki popped out of hiding, and looked between the two with a worried expression.

You could see it when Marinette realized it herself, and within seconds she was _furious_ , "You-...you broke into my room...just so you could-"

"You broke into _my_ room first!" Sarah retorted, before fully thinking it through.

"That-you!" Marinette was seething.

"I just want my stuff back!" Sarah defended herself.

"How did you even get in here?!" Marinette demanded.

Sarah winced, knowing she couldn't out Chat, "Three stories isn't _that_ high of a climb, you know?"

"YOU WHAT?!"

"Marinette! What's taking so long?!" Alya's voice carried up the stairs, "And what are you shouting about?!"

The trio blanched. Tikki ducked out of sight, and Sarah scrambled for the stairs. _Somehow_ Sarah made it to the loft before Alya popped her head into the room.

"Oh, uh, th-there was a bug in my room!" Marinette said quickly, waving her arms about in a panic, "Hold on, I need to chase it right quick, so can you wait downstairs?!"

Alya blinked, "Wha-?"

"It will only take a minute!" Marinette all but shoved her friend down the stairs.

"O-o _kay_...?" Alya was finally prodded down the steps.

Marinette quickly closed the trap door, and then shot after where she had last seen Sarah.

Sarah meanwhile, was halfway out the hatch, and hurriedly gesturing for Chat to _hide_.

"Get down from there!" Marinette hissed, grappling Sarah around the waist and pulling her back into the room.

Sarah "eeped" as she fell backwards onto Marinette's bed.

"Enough of this!" Marinette scolded, index finger in Sarah's face the moment the girl righted herself, "No more crazy antics! You are _not_ climbing anymore walls!"

"Are you sure you don't need help, Marinette?!" Alya called up through the floor.

Both girls tensed, and Marinette quickly called back, "No! I've got this! Just a minute!"

"Look, fine, I won't climb down the wall, okay?! I'll just hide out on your balcony until someone can help me sneak down!" Sarah offered quickly, "Don't let her get suspicious!"

Marinette held a knuckle to her lips, thinking it over quickly.

Then a pair of boots landed on the roof above them, and a black gloved hand knocked on the hatch, "Hello? Is everything alright over here?"

Chat Noir peered down at them in apparent concern while the girls both gaped at him, "Someone saw a dark figure climbing your tower, Princess, are you okay?"

Sarah clasped a hand over her mouth, partially out of acting, and partially to keep from bursting out laughing at his nickname for Marinette.

"..." Marinette pointed accusingly at Sarah.

Chat looked between them, and then made a concerned face at Sarah, "...I thought we determined that breaking into other people's homes was a _bad_ thing."

Marinette cringed. Again, Sarah had to resist a strong urge to laugh.

"We _did_ , but...um, can I maybe tell you _after_ you escort me off the premises? Alya is just seconds away from finding out I'm up here, and we _really_ don't have a good explanation for her..."

"Yes, _please, Chat_ , can you take her home?" Marinette asked quickly.

"Ah, well, your word is my command, Princess," Chat bowed, then offered a hand to help Sarah out.

Sarah promptly took the hand. Seconds later she was out, and the hatch was slammed shut (and locked) behind her.

Free from their audience, cat-hero and cat-burglar both let out a breath.

"...well, I guess..." Sarah shrugged and waved her hands, breathing out again for lack of words, "...sorry I wasted your time with this."

He sighed, "What are you going to do now?"

Sarah shrugged, staring down at her shoes in dejection, then sighed, "...I won't bother you about this again. I'll give up on the suit."

His eyes went wide, "Wha-...you will?"

Slowly she nodded, hugging herself and rubbing her arm.

"...why?" he asked, tilting his head to try and catch her eye.

"...instead of helping anyone, I almost got you and Marinette into trouble today," Sarah admitted, "...I guess I'm starting to realize...I was depending on the suit too much. It was my first big idea, and I was really proud of it...so I didn't want to let it go. But if trying to get it back is going to cause this many problems...I need to let it go."

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she looked up to see an approving smile. She had a feeling he was going to say some sort of mortifying praise, _so_...

"So, you have a Lady, _and_ a Princess?" Sarah quirked a brow, "You're quite the cat-sanova, aren't you?"

Chat Noir choked.

…

Marinette wasn't sure if she should believe the text she received from Sarah later that day, but decided to leave it at that for the time being.

* * *

 **Troublemaker:** [Alright, so Chat Noir had a little talk with me...and he's right, I shouldn't have broken into your room, I'm sorry. And I'm sorry I almost got you in trouble with Alya. I still definitely want my stuff back, BEFORE I move back to Ireland...but I'm not going to fight you on this anymore. So you can stop worrying about it...Princess~

 **Troublemaker:** [You never TOLD me that cat liked you on BOTH sides of the mask! X3 That is way too precious!]

* * *

Ugh, of _course_ Sarah had been around to hear Chat's silly nickname for her. Just her luck.

* * *

 **Marinette:** [He flirts with ALL the girls, don't even go there. XP]

 **Troublemaker:** [He does? BOY does THIS poor girl feel left out. :P]

* * *

Her traitorous Kwami giggled. Marinette blushed ( _purely_ from embarrassment, _obviously_ ), and opted to drop the argument.

* * *

 **Marinette:** [UGH, I only like Adrien, END OF DISCUSSION.]

 **Troublemaker:** [I know, I know...still, ADORABLE!]

 **Marinette:** [XP]

* * *

Marinette just _knew_ Sarah was never going to let her forget it...still, she felt oddly relieved that Sarah was joking with her again...she'd kind of missed it.

…

Soon enough, Chat Noir found a moment to chat with his lady.

" _So_...talk to Marinette recently?"

Ladybug gaped at her partner, and then groaned, "...I guess that means you heard it all from Sarah?"

As far as she knew, Chat wouldn't have had a clue about her having a "connection" with Marinette, or about the "confiscating", unless Sarah had said something after being caught trying to steal it back. Really, why would she suspect otherwise?

"I may have convinced her to indulge my curiosity," Chat concurred.

"...she's moving back to Ireland this summer," Ladybug looked away, "Once she's safely out of the country, I'll make sure her belongings are returned to her..."

"...are you sure about this?" Chat asked gently.

"I...I can't just _let_ her become a target because of me!" Ladybug burst out, "If I give her the suit _now_ who knows what could happen!"

"Hey, hey," Chat tried to sooth her.

"...I know it was wrong to take it from her, and even if Tikki doesn't say it, I know she's disappointed...but...I just don't know what else to do..." Ladybug sat down on their high perch, curling in on herself.

Chat sat down next to her.

"...it's my fault she's doing this, you know?" Ladybug admitted quietly, causing Chat to look at her in shock, "I wasn't careful enough, and she found out my secret...now for whatever reason she feels like she needs to go _above and beyond_ to help me, and she keeps coming up with more and more reckless ideas, and she doesn't even _care_ that it's too dangerous! I can already picture Hawkmoth getting a clue, singling her out, and trying to get information out of her...and I'm more afraid she'll keep her mouth shut to the bitter end instead of spill my secret to save herself!"

She felt his arm wrap around her shoulders, and after the surprise she silently accepted the comfort.

"...it wasn't your fault she found out," Chat said after a moment, "As for her desire to help...I don't think that on its own a bad thing. She _purrobably_ shouldn't be doing most of the things she's thought up, but...not all heroes have magical powers, LB."

"All she has is a very _smart_ mouth..." Ladybug muttered.

Chat chuckled, "Do you know what she said to me that first time I carried her home?"

Ladybug blinked, "What did she say?"

"Well, when I pointed out that fighting with you over a suit was counter-productive to beating Hawkmoth, and she realized that on top of that you were both fighting _because_ of Hawkmoth, she was so frustrated that she declared that if she ever got Akumatized, she was going to kick his butt!"

Ladybug's mouth opened and closed a few times, and then she burst out laughing, "Th-that...! It doesn't work that-...! H-he wouldn't Akumatize someone that-hahahaha!"

Seeing her laugh pleased Chat immensely, "I dunno, he's thrown out some _purretty_ stupid Akumas at us, we might get _lucky_ ~."

Ladybug giggled, "Poetic justice, I like the sound of that."

"...it's not your fault Sarah is taking risks, Ladybug," Chat told her, "We take risks too. We didn't have to take up arms against Hawkmoth, we could have left it to someone else, right? We were chosen, and I have a _feline_ they'd be hard pressed to find a team as great as us, but...it didn't have to be _our_ fight, right?"

"...my friend was in trouble, it became my fight," Ladybug said.

"And afterwards?"

She looked at him with a slight smirk, and poked him in the chest, " _Afterwards,_ _another_ of my friends was _constantly_ in trouble."

He grinned widely at that, then smirked, "So should I blame myself every time you throw yourself into danger?"

"Wha?! Why would yo-..." realizing where he was going with this, Ladybug pouted.

"Well, Milady, I'd say that is a contradiction," he smirked.

"You don't say," she replied dryly, then sighed.

"Friends worry about friends," he said, "We worry about each other, and you and Sarah worry about each other. There's no need to blame yourself for that."

"...but she seems to think she has to follow _my_ example to help! As Ladybug I can do things that _no_ ordinary girl can, and she's trying to model herself after _that_!" she argued, "She _literally_ modeled herself after me, you can't deny that."

"...actually, I don't think she has," Chat said, surprising her, "The way I see it, she tried to think up the most effective methods that could help you in a pinch...and one of the things she came up with was the idea to create an _illusion_ of you to confuse people. I think if she could have pulled it off without wearing the suit herself, she would have. She didn't try be a superhero, she only tried to make the real one more elusive."

"...she climbed up a three-story building, Chat."

"Well, rock-climbing is more my thing than yours."

"Chat."

"I'm not saying it was right, I'm just saying it wasn't your fault. If she was modeling after anyone, it was probably me. I've heard her make cat-puns, LB, I stand witness! She is a _vicious_ punner!"

Ladybug face-palmed, "...I thought I was just hearing things, but maybe she _has_ been slipping in more and more puns... _Chaaaat_..."

"She is a worthy student," Chat nodded to himself.

"God, no, please don't."

"She _begged_ me to teach her," he smirked.

"Oh my God. No. You are not encouraging it!" she poked him hard in the chest, with enough force he had to take his arm off her shoulders to catch his balance, "She's cheeky enough as it is!"

"Forgive me, Milady, I cannot forsake a damsel in distress~!"

" _I'm_ distressed."

"Does that make me your knight?"

"More like my _jester_."

"You wound me."

"You've had worse."

"...Ladybug..." Chat sighed, serious again, "...I realize Sarah is your friend, and you just want to keep her out of harm's way...but I'm sorry to say, I don't know what you can really do to stop her."

"...I know..." Ladybug looked down again, "...but...just _letting_ her run around with my target on her back is more than I can bear...if something were to happen, and I couldn't get there in time..."

"Good thing I'm faster than you."

She punched him in the arm.

"...yeah, I know what you mean," Chat conceded finally, "I'm really glad she's looking out for you...and I hate to see how sad she was about the suit...but...the thought of Hawkmoth figuring her out and going after her...I can't stomach the thought either...though I would pay good money to see him forced to sit through one of her lectures."

"Lectures?" Ladybug raised a brow.

Chat looked sheepish, "Uh...anyway, I just want to say...if you think this is for the best...I'm going to trust your judgment, LB. I just hope you and Sarah can find a way to work things out soon."

Ladybug considered that, "...thank you, Chat...and I hope so too."

He smiled, "Anytime, Bugaboo."

She smiled.

Another thought occurred to him, "Hey...I know it's none of my business, but...just how mad do you think Marinette is about this whole thing?"

Ladybug chuckled, "...I wouldn't worry about it, Chat. I'm sure she and Sarah will figure it out soon enough."

…

Chapter End

* * *

Were Adrien's misguided conclusions at the beginning of this chapter not absolutely adorable? Now in his mind Ladybug most definitely does NOT go to their school, and she most certainly did NOT figure out Sarah was Dopplebug because she recognized her own stitch work...can I just hug him, please? X3

Sarah throwing her pencil? I don't know how it happens, exactly, but it happens to me an awful lot. I have it in my fingers one second, and the next it's flying across the room. I am then forced to quickly declare it an accident-no I was not throwing it on purpose, I swear it was really an accident, stop laughing!-and very quickly recover my writing device while my face attempts a tomato impersonation...unless I was somehow lucky enough to be the only one in the room, lol. In any case, it just happens, and I shared my misfortune with this Mary Sue. You're welcome.

And sorry for the Ladrien bashing...though personally I just think of it as inspiration for angst...oh, the drama~ (sorry, not sorry)

Extreme Marinette is extreme? Well...Sarah is kind of pathetic. Before and after Hawkmoth tried to Akumatize her she was a MESS. Marinette knows now why Sarah is such a high level of clumsy (well, she's still a bit clumsy naturally, but...), but that doesn't help her image of Sarah being "helpless". There's also nothing stopping her from speaking her mind around Sarah. With other people, she's always under stress to keep her lives separate, so she can't lecture "troublemakers" like Alya or Chloe to quite the same degree. I mean, we've seen her throw Alya in a cage, and Chloe in an elevator, to keep them safe and out of trouble (she MIGHT have enjoyed that second one, but she still had a reason for doing it). Marinette can be pushy and bossy (and extreme) with the right motivation, and the more she grows into her role as a hero the more she wants to make sure people are safe. Also, Sarah lied to her. Marinette naturally has a strong discomfort with deception from others, and she's been fooled by Sarah one too often, so she SHOULD be determined not to be tricked again.

To summarize, Marinette sees Sarah as an unpredictable hazard to herself, and she's ticked off that Sarah is being reckless, lying to her, AND refusing to listen to reason...and Marinette can be extreme sometimes. Get that girl too focused on something, and WHOOPS, she has Adrien's face all over her bedroom and his schedule all mapped out...when Marinette puts her mind to something, she pulls out all the stops, like, wow. (I know a lot of you judge her for doing that, and maybe it is really creepy, and yeah, she's kind of putting the boy on a high pedestal (love is blind though, give her that) but...it's her way of expressing the devotion she's struggling to express to him personally. She has way too much creative energy to keep it bottled up, so guess what happens.)

...Marinette and Sarah are BOTH in the wrong. Sarah really has no business doing what she's doing and should stop being so selfish, AND Marinette has no say in whether Sarah risks her own stupid neck or not. Buuuuut, they're also hot-blooded teenagers with hero-complexes, so whatcha gonna do? :/

Fun fact: that Chloe burn was one of the FIRST things I wrote for this story. ^_^

And Adrien really IS a sucker for Damsels in Distress, don't lie.

You also love the reoccurring Camembert Stench and Shower Obsession references. AND the return of the Princess nickname. :)

And I gave you some sweet LadyNoir this time. You're welcome~ ;D

Holy cripes, this chapter is 11,000+ words...I tried not to go over 10,000, but...*shrugs helplessly*

Alright, so...the next chapter gets into my theories pre-spoilers (outside of Kwami names, which I am SO happy to have access to)...

Honestly, I'm kind of desperately hoping that the whole "Carapace" thing will turn out to be a hoax...ugh, of all the names, WHY did it have to be something that refers to arthropods as well as turtles? Turtle Jade is such an awesome name! WHY THE HECK IS IT CARAPACE?! I took Zoology, okay? DO YOU KNOW HOW GROSS THAT NAME SOUNDS WHEN YOU'RE TRAUMATIZED FROM HAVING TO DEAL WITH DEAD THINGS?! ...also, um, I sort of read Homestuck, so...ugh, it just gives me a weird feeling, okay? (DO NOT READ HOMESTUCK. YOU WERE WARNED.) Anyway...yeah, I'm hoping that the whole Carapace thing is a hoax, based off the fact that the picture does not have the "official" look to it, and I'm having trouble finding informative sources beyond the "spoiler video", and we all know by now that the creators love to mess with us *coughVulpinacough*, and all the in-depth symbolism analysis that has been carved into my poor fangirl soul has it SCREAMING in frothy-mouthed denial...(this show has destroyed my life, I swear...)


	5. Screams and Drama Queens

Chapter 5: Screams and Drama Queens

Time was passing quickly, the school year was already half over, and in about 5 months Sarah would leave France for Ireland with her family. It was a highly emotional time for her, especially since a certain kleptomaniac had _stolen_ her "Dopplebug" gear and _refused_ to give it back, but she still kept finding ways to enjoy the moment, and help her heroes. She would miss her friends (she'd made actual _friends_ , for goodness sakes), but despite the fact that she'd spent a large chunk of her childhood in France, _Ireland_ was home, and that was where she was going to go. She didn't have many "friends" there, to be perfectly honest (the reason for that was a long story involving an extended tantrum by an 8-year old "French raised" Sarah, who had a very _large_ vocabulary, some very snobby local kids with _very_ long memories...and perhaps the _grouchiest_ Nun in _all_ of Europe...), but she _was_ very close to most of her cousins (and one of the neighbors' kids, who were practically family too), and she truly _did_ miss her Irish relatives. Ireland was home...but her heart was conflicted.

For better or worse though, a new sort of drama made her temporarily forget her own inner turmoil. It seemed that her "Miraculous" experience for the year wasn't about to be limited to just Ladybugs, Cats, and Butterflies.

The sudden appearance of a Fox-themed super-heroine (who was _not_ the much disputed "Vulpina"), had all of Paris buzzing like crazy with her first appearance. She was bold, beautiful and brave, and seemed to know _exactly_ what she was doing (for the most part).

This girl, "Foxy Rouge", made quite an impact...on _both_ sides of a certain blogger's camera, apparently.

…

It only took Sarah a few days (after Winter Break, anyway) to bridge the connection between Alya and Foxy Rouge. How Marinette missed it was beyond her.

To be fair though, Alya had _kind_ of overdone it by suddenly questioning her about things she wasn't supposed to be aware of...

Just before Foxy Rouge first appeared, Alya had video-called Sarah during the school break (yes, Sarah had exchanged numbers with Alya earlier in the year, as part of her efforts to help Marinette avoid detection while also _actually_ making friends). After the initial hellos, and Sarah apologizing and explaining that the background noise was her Irish uncles getting into a "debate" about something or another, Alya had jumped right into it.

"Alright, so I have a question for you. What did you call the source of Ladybug's power, again?" Alya asked.

"The Ladybug Miraculous?" Sarah tilted her head in confusion.

"Is that all? Was there another part to it?" Alya pressed.

Sarah frowned, "...I'm really not supposed to say any more. I'm sorry, Alya..."

"Let's just say another Ladybug let a clue slip, alright?" Alya said, "Something about a "Tikki", or something?"

Sarah's eyebrows flew up despite herself. Marinette was _far_ too careful to let the Kwami's name slip. Something didn't fit.

"She really said that?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah, I heard her talking to Chat Noir. They didn't realize I could hear them," Alya told her.

Still odd, but more feasible.

"...Tikki is not something you're supposed to know about. I'm sorry, but I can't tell you more."

"Come on, completely off record, I promise," Alya held her free hand up in a sign of sincerity.

Sarah frowned at her, "... _Tikki_ is what you might call the other half of the Ladybug Miraculous. That's all I'm divulging. These things are secret for a reason."

Alya appeared disappointed, and pursed her lips, "...what about "Plagg", what about him?"

Sarah winced, "...what about him?"

"Chat Noir mentioned him," Alya said, "He called him a...something like Salami?"

Sarah failed to stop the snort, and then outright laughed into her hand, "I can't... _believe_ you just...are you _seriously_ comparing an ancient magical-... _thing_ to something you put on a _sandwich_?"

"Well, enlighten me, what's it actually called?" Alya huffed.

Sarah didn't miss how Alya was carefully analyzing her. So, she sighed, and told as little of the truth as possible, "... _Plagg_ is an entity called a _Kwami_. Happy?"

Alya only frowned more.

"Look, I don't know how to help you. My hands are tied here," Sarah complained.

"...fine, I'll let it go for now," Alya deflated.

Later, Sarah had quickly gleamed from Adrien that no such conversation had occurred between him and Ladybug. Ever. Alya had _lied_. Clearly there was another reason why Alya had known about the Kwamis, and that was a huge tip-off (once Sarah stopped panicking, anyway).

Soon after "Foxy Rouge" made her first public appearance, Alya called again and apologized for badgering Sarah about it. Then, after classes resumed, Sarah caught Alya giving her odd looks, as if she'd suddenly gained a new respect for her.

There was also the glaringly obvious necklace. In class Alya claimed it was an old family heirloom she'd found at home, and that she had just taken a fancy to it. No one had batted an eye. Sarah hadn't seen a reason to suspect it at the time, although she had found it strange how Alya seemed somewhat self-conscious about it. It wasn't until Sarah noticed a _subtly_ similar piece of jewelry on the new super-heroine a few days later, on top of Alya's unusual behavior, that she finally pieced it together.

Sarah decided she would hold out on admitting that she knew. Alya deserved to feel that her secret was secure a bit longer. But...it was less than two weeks later that a classmate _unintentionally_ drew attention to Alya's shocking resemblance to the new super-heroine. If she hadn't been so anxious, Sarah might have felt like applauding the observer.

Nino _was_ a pretty observant guy, to be honest. Adrien and Marinette were _so_ lucky he hadn't caught on yet. Him pointing out that Alya looked kind of like Foxy had just been a casual observation, no hint of suspicion, but that probably made it worse.

Once he said it, suddenly the whole class was noticing it. Alya tried to play it off, laughing and smiling convincingly, but someone was bound to notice soon that she was unusually tense.

"Come _on_ , you guys," Sarah groaned as loudly as was socially acceptable, "Why would _another_ superhero be hiding in here when _I've_ already been busted?"

She resisted the urge to wink at a surprised Alya.

"As if you would rat 'em out," Alix pointed out.

"I _dunno_ , I might be feeling rather resentful after losing my spots. And my _yo-yo_! I was just getting the hang of the darn thing!"

She definitely _was_ still miffed at Marinette for that. It was so unfair! (Though _maybe_ trying to sneak into her room to get it back hadn't been the _best_ way to make Marinette more willing to return it...and speaking of Marinette, Sarah didn't miss the girl rolling her eyes at the complaint. _Neh_.)

"It's not their fault you refused to wait for Chat Noir," Max quipped.

"Don't _remind_ me!" Sarah complained, face-planting on her desk in (partially fake) despair.

Some of the nicer classmates gave her pitying looks.

"In any case, there's _no way_ Alya is that _obnoxiously_ annoying fox," Marinette pointed out, clearly finding the idea ridiculous.

"She is not!" Alya looked stunned.

"I dunno, Marinette, I think she's kind of adorable," Sarah spoke up again, "What do you think, Rose? Juleka?"

"Yes! She seemed really fun!" Rose chimed in excitedly, "And did you see how she helped that poor boy on the street? She really cares about people! Isn't that wonderful?!"

"Yeah," Juleka agreed, more quietly, but clearly sharing the sentiment.

"See!" Alya grinned in victory at her friend.

Marinette made a show of rolling her eyes, "I think I'll like her more if she stops _screaming_ about everything. You could hear her on the camera from yards away. Just imagine what that must have been like for Ladybug and Chat Noir."

Alya pouted.

Adrien made no comment.

"Can't blame a new hero for being excited when she's working with _everyone's_ heroes, now can you?" Nino piped up, "She must feel like the luckiest girl in Paris right now."

"Exactly!" Sarah chimed in, "And she's been doing such a great job! She'll be fitting in before you know it!"

"Just because she's not as hopeless as _you_ doesn't mean she's that great," Chloe hmphed.

Sarah frowned at her, but otherwise was not injured by the comment.

"Hey, Sarah did a great job, you're just jealous," Alya retorted.

Marinette actually nodded in agreement. One look at her expression made it clear that Marinette was not simply agreeing to support Alya, nor disagreeing because of Chloe's nastiness. She actually _meant_ it. After receiving near constant scoldings and frowns from the girl ever since the Super Strong incident, such a response left Sarah at a loss for words.

"Excuse me?" Chloe looked offended, "She was disqualified in less than a day!"

"But she also made sure things got done," Alya argued, "I bet if she hadn't been busted because she cared more about _us_ than getting to be Ladybug, she would have been an _awesome_ superhero!"

Well, the topic had safely shifted away from the Fox, but now Sarah had to deal with the repercussions. The sentiment was touching, but the statement was unfortunately tainted by a few awkward falsehoods. Her face could _not_ be more red.

"Th-thanks, Alya..." Sarah managed, "But it was probably for the best I was retired so soon...I _still_ have bruises from trying to use that darn yo-yo..."

Marinette noted the genuine honesty in the statement, and offered a small smile, "Maybe the yo-yo wasn't for you, but you're still amazing in your own way, Sarah."

Sarah's lip trembled dangerously for a moment, and she struggled to play it off, "Oh, uh, you finally noticed, huh?"

Marinette snorted at the weak sass attempt, "Yeah, yeah. Happy?"

"To tears," Sarah giggled, giddiness rising up inside her.

And Adrien's big, happy grin was _not_ helping prevent potential hysterics. Especially when Marinette turned around to see it directed at _her_. Then he _winked_ at Marinette before turning to face forward, completely missing the part where Alya had to make a frantic grab for the swooning girl.

Sarah was positively trembling with how hard she was trying not to laugh out loud. And fortunately for her, while she was still a giggling mess, no one brought up the Foxy Rouge thing again, and soon enough the Teacher came and class was in full swing. Crisis averted.

...

Considering the previous close-call, Sarah decided to send Alya a discrete text over Lunch Break.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Since the class has actually raised suspicions, I think it would be a good idea to have a little chat about ways to throw them off. Especially Marinette. That girl is super sharp, and yes I think she is just a little suspicious, SO BE CAREFUL!]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Lol, don't tell me you're serious?]

 **Sarah:** [Maybe next time lay off the "Salami". I know for a FACT you never "overheard" such a discussion, so don't even try. ;P]

* * *

On her end, Alya blanched and scrambled, trying to think of a way to throw Sarah off, and slowly arriving at the grim conclusion that there was probably no point in trying. When her vixen Kwami stole a peek at the texts, taking advantage of the brief lack of people in Alya's bedroom, she gave the girl a look.

"I _told_ you that interrogation was a bad idea."

"Not helping, Trixx," Alya grumbled.

"Unless you want to throw _another_ flimsy lie at her, you might as well give up. She clearly has the resources to debunk you. More helpful?"

Alya gave her a dirty look, "Really? No _profound_ ideas from the _mistress_ of all illusion?"

" _Child_ , next time I _tell_ _you_ something is a bad idea, _listen_. A fox is _curious_ , but not _reckless_."

Alya groaned.

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [Dammit, so you've known the whole time?]

 **Sarah:** [Nah, it actually took me awhile to piece things together. You hide it really well, and I'm not just saying that to be nice. Still, that little "interrogation" was a HUGE tip off, so thank you for that. :P]

 **The Paparazzi:** [*cringing emoticon* Should have listened to my "Salami", I guess, lol.]

 **Sarah:** [If your Salami warned you not to let your curiosity get the better of you, then he/she sounds very wise. :)]

* * *

Trixx let out an appreciative "hmm".

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [She's a bit of a know-it-all, actually. :P]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, I'd love to meet her sometime, if you guys are cool with that. Anyway, I'm always eager to help out, as I'm sure SOMEONE has explained to you (is she still mad at me?), so, yup. If you ever need help with an alibi or anything, this is me officially offering, lol.]

* * *

"Curious little meddler," Trixx chuckled.

"Careful, I might start to think you like her or something," Alya teased.

"I believe she would make a valuable ally, but you should be careful," Trixx informed her, "Children like her are prone to over-doing it, and with her knowing your identity, the _last_ thing we need is her getting anywhere near an Akuma."

"...Ladybug trusts her," Alya nodded to herself, "Possibly even with _her_ identity."

"Perhaps."

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [I don't think the ALMIGHTY Salami would mind meeting you, lol, but you'll probably regret it. ;P And yeah, LB told me about you and your crazy scam (you guys totally had me fooled, you sneaks!), and she actually spoke rather highly of you!]

 **Sarah:** [She did? I figured she was still ticked off at me! (Did she mention that I was the doppleganger that faced-off with Super Strong? She was DEFINITELY not happy with me afterwards...)]

 **The Paparazzi:** [OMG!

 **The Paparazzi:** [HOLY SH*T!]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, I'm guessing she DIDN'T mention it.]

 **The Paparazzi:** [I want to say I can't believe that was you, but OMG I SEE it now! Girl, I'm SO sorry I cornered you into that! XO]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, not your fault I was being dumb. Like I told you when you showed me the video, I SHOULD have dropped the act. And now I can tell you how grateful I am that you stuck your neck out for me afterwards! THANK YOU~! ^_^ And I'm sorry for the confusion, lol...]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Wow, girl...what exactly was that all about anyway?]

 **Sarah:** [I was using the suit to make people think Ladybug was where she wasn't, so people would be less likely to figure out her true identity. I was actually doing a REALLY good job until that day...I REALLY WISH SOMEONE COULD HAVE MENTIONED THAT THE AKUMA COULD FLY! *cringing emoticon* I wouldn't have risked it if I had known, honest!]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Girl, respect.]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, thanks, but...Ladybug was actually pretty mad when she found out about all that...not that that was exactly the BEST way to find out (I would have freaked out too), but there was also the fact that she SORT of told me to never wear the suit again the FIRST time I wore it...so...yeah, I actually wasn't kidding about my stuff being confiscated. -_- And we haven't really talked much since...so I actually thought she was still mad...]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Dang, sounds like quite the tiff! But I don't think she's really mad anymore. Maybe you should try talking to her again sometime?]

 **Sarah:** [Lol...I guess you figured out I know her behind the mask then?]

 **The Paparazzi:** [SO YOU SERIOUSLY DO?!]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, how else would I know so much about the Kwamis?]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Well, thats pretty much the main reason why I suspected, but...how did you find her out?!]

 **Sarah:** [Can't tell you the details (sorry), but it obviously wasn't intentional...Tikki probably saved my life that day, lol! Ladybug was definitely freaked out!]

 **The Paparazzi:** [How long have you known?]

 **Sarah:** [Top Secret.]

 **The Paparazzi:** [ARG!]

 **Sarah:** [Sorry, lol, I know you're curious, but these lips are sealed.]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Lol, well, all the more reason to trust you to protect MY secret, right?]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, I would hope! ^_^]

 **The Paparazzi:** [And I'm sorry you were forced to retire the uniform. :( I bet it would have been so cool to work together!]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, "Dopplebug" suit or not, I can still help you out if you need me to, you have my number. ;D But I think you've got this! You can do everything I was doing and so much more! With your illusions to confuse Hawkmoth, things have never been better! You've quite effectively dethroned me as the Master of Disguise, so I can now HAPPILY retire to a nice couch, lol! :D]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Aww! I'll do my best to live up to your legacy! ;D]

 **Sarah:** [Aww, I'm sure you'll make me proud! ;D Seriously, you are wicked awesome out there, lol! (Though you might want to cool down on the squealing, that could be taken as flirting if they research the actual animal's behavior, you know?)]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Wait, what?]

* * *

Trixx let out a weary sighed.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Real foxes apparently scream at each other when they like each other? Sorry, I was curious about whether the suit could affect your behavior or not, so I did a little reading? ^_^;]

* * *

Actually, it was all Adrien's fault. The boy had been sharing speculation with her. Personally, she thought it was silly, since Adrien was totally being cat-like on purpose, mostly, probably, but she couldn't blame him for being a little uneasy when the team's dynamic had suddenly shifted like that.

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [Wow, um, okay? I wasn't aware of that...]

 **Sarah:** [Well, you ARE a fan, so I think it's natural to display affection towards them? I just thought I'd mention it because a certain someone MIGHT start to suspect you as competing for "his" Lady's affections?]

 **The Paparazzi:** [That...would actually be kind of hilarious, lol!]

* * *

Trixx's eyes momentarily sparked with mischief.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Okay, yes, it kind of would be, but that boy is distracted enough as it is, so please don't give him more reason to be, I'm begging you! XD]

* * *

"Messing with Plagg's chosen only once or twice might not be so bad..." Trixx tried.

"What about the Karma?" Alya teased.

"That's why I said _only_ once or twice!" Trixx defended.

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [Aww, so I can't flirt with him either then, huh? Rats. XD]

 **Sarah:** [Nope, plus you kind of have that thing called a BOYFRIEND. XD]

 **The Paparazzi:** [A boyfriend who just about gave me a heart attack today! XO]

 **Sarah:** [Yeah, I don't think he suspects anything right now, but be careful, that boy has a sharp eye!]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Fortunately my baby is so completely trusting...and God I feel horrible for tricking him. :(]

 **Sarah:** [At least you have a legitimate reason for doing it. If you ever get to tell him about it, I'm sure he'll completely understand. He absolutely adores you, and he's one of the most understanding guys I've seen.]

 **The Paparazzi:** [I so wish I could tell him NOW though. I mean, I completely understand why that's a bad idea and all, but...you know.]

* * *

Trixx took a moment to briefly nuzzle Alya's cheek, which bright a small smile of gratitude to her chosen's face.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [When I have depressing thoughts like that, I just remind myself that everything will be peachy again once you guys take down Hawkmoth, and I just focus on that instead, lol.]

* * *

"Forward thinking," Trixx approved.

Alya grinned at her.

* * *

 **The Paparazzi:** [You are exactly right! Thanks for the pep talk! ;D]

 **Sarah:** [That's what I'm here for! ;)]

 **The Paparazzi:** [Oh, and I thought you were here to confuse the living daylights out of people. ;P]

 **Sarah:** [That too. ;P]

* * *

...

Sarah was surprised when Marinette approached her after school, and asked to speak with her. She wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but she followed Marinette to a quiet spot.

"...you don't think...Alya is Foxy Rouge, do you?" Marinette hesitated to ask.

Sarah couldn't help it when her jaw dropped, "...you...actually suspect her?"

To think that, after over a _year and a half_ of working with Chat Noir, and actually spending a decent amount of time with Adrien himself, Marinette _still_ didn't have a clue, but now she suspected Alya after less than a month?

"No! I mean...I don't know?" Marinette floundered, "It's just...people were questioning it...and you were doing that thing you do..."

"Uh, you mean trying to keep people from thinking there could _possibly_ be a superhero under their noses? I'd do that anyway," Sarah pointed out, silently grateful that Marinette hadn't caught on to her clumsy reaction, "I mean, yeah, Alya looks a bit like Foxy Rouge, but...seriously, _why_ would there be two superheroes hiding in the same classroom? _Why_?"

Yes, she seriously wanted to know.

Marinette considered that, "...maybe you're right. That would be irresponsible."

The girl then smiled at Sarah, seeming relieved, "Thanks, Sarah."

Sarah offered a smile, but inside the guilt was slowly gnawing at her, "No problem."

"...and I meant what I said in class," Marinette told her, "I really do appreciate what you've done to help me...I know I've been pretty harsh, 'cause, well, you _did_ lie to me...and it honestly scares me to think someone is dumb enough wear _my_ target on their back...I know you were _trying_ to be careful, but still...it's bad enough with Chat constantly taking hits for me, you know?"

Sarah understood, "Yeah...if I were you I'd feel the same way...I just can't help but want to help...ever since I figured out you were Ladybug, I've been rooting for you...and ever since I was almost Akumatized, I began to think maybe I could do more than act as a silly classroom distraction...I'm not as desperate to run out and be Dopplebug anymore though, now that you have _Foxy_ to confuse the living daylights out of everyone. I'm so relieved knowing she has your back."

Marinette smiled softly, "...you have my back too. Thank you, Sarah."

Sarah came dangerously close to crying, and just nodded mutely.

"...friends?" Marinette offered a hand.

Sarah laughed into her hands, nodding happily with eyes shining. Letting out a small laugh of her own, Marinette moved forward and hugged the emotional girl, who leaned in and returned it with one arm and an embarrassed giggle.

They didn't ruin the moment by mentioning the still stolen Dopplebug suit and yo-yo. Magical friendship hugs were much too important.

…

When Adrien video-called her later that day, Sarah was beginning to see a pattern.

"Don't tell me _you're_ suspecting Alya too," Sarah groaned, "Are you _serious_?"

The boy looked startled, then embarrassed, "Uh...so she's not?"

"Did you not hear what I said before? _Why_ would there be _two_ superheroes hiding in the same classroom?" Sarah waved her hand in frustration, "It's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of!"

Was she misleading him? Yes. Was she being the least bit dishonest? Not for _that_ outburst at least.

"Well, when you put it that way..." he smiled sheepishly.

Plagg was definitely snickering in the background.

Sarah sighed, "Sorry...I just get a little worked up when people start pointing fingers, you know? I'm always worried that you or Ladybug are going to get yourselves busted somehow, and sudden bouts of suspicion make me antsy."

His eyes were kind, "I understand. You have every right to feel that way...and thanks, for looking out for us like this...Alya and Marinette were right, you know? You may not wear magical spandex, and _maybe_ a yo-yo isn't your forte, but you're _definitely_ a hero."

Sarah flushed, "You...you people are just _trying_ to make my head explode...seriously, Chloe's comments don't bother me anymore, and her jab wasn't even directed at _me_ , she's just irritated that some _other_ girl is lucky enough to be fighting next to _her_ idol...you know?"

He blinked, then laughed, "You've pretty much got her pegged, huh?"

"Know thy enemy, and all that," Sarah shrugged.

"Aww, too bad," he sighed dramatically, holding back a grin that glittered in his eyes, "She'd probably learn the error of her ways with a friend like you."

"Okay, _stop_ meddling, that's _my_ job," she pointed at the camera with playful severity.

"If you can make cat puns, I can meddle," he shrugged it off, still grinning.

"Me-owch! You got me there!" she held a hand to her chest, as if shocked, before snickering, "Seriously though, me and Chloe? Not happening, sorry."

He shrugged, "Worth a shot."

…

Crisis averted, somehow. Sarah began to relax. Foxy Rouge made things a lot easier for Ladybug and Chat Noir. Most days. The one time she was turned into an Akuma's minion was pretty wild.

Maybe Sarah was a little envious of Alya's awesome magical powers, but honestly, she was content with her current role (and she didn't envy Alya for her mischievous, "know-it-all" Kwami, adorable as Trixx was). It was fun watching over them, giving them little nudges when things got too close, and she was getting better at playing the distraction without bruising something.

Who said being a hero had to be all work and no play? She was having _fun_!

…

Sarah's perspective began to change, however, when she saw super-hero number _four_ on her family's television screen. One look at the masked boy, and Sarah's eyes _bugged_. She'd tried blinking, rubbing her eyes, and glaring at the footage, but she just kept _seeing_ it.

Her parents never did learn _why_ exactly Sarah had found it so necessary to _scream_ into a couch cushion. For well over an hour. (She was frustrated, okay?)

Yes, Sarah knew right away that the bright blue peacock-boy was Nino.

And if she'd had any doubt? He was literally the _worst_ actor out of all of them. The first day back from Easter Break, it only took a casual glance to realize that he _knew_ the world was somehow out to get him. And every time Adrien tried to ask him what was wrong? The poor boy went into a _frenzy_ denying it, and then looked positively _wrecked_ with guilt afterwards.

So suspicious behavior, check. An ordinary-looking pin on his hat? Odd for him, and definitely falling into a familiar pattern. The thing that really should have tipped people off? The fact that he kept touching said pin, and that he no longer dared to remove his hat. Ever.

But even without all that...seeing the strutting, sassy boy in full feathery glory (fortunately of the hypoallergenic variety), standing among three other familiar faces as naturally as...he literally did _every_ day in school...yeah, she couldn't have missed that if she'd tried.

How was NO ONE ELSE catching on to this?! Was it just because she was absurdly paranoid on top of being nosily observant about things that were none of her business? Could NO ONE ELSE put two and two together?! HOW COULD PEOPLE BE SO OBLIVIOUS?!

Well, if she didn't act soon, it appeared that at least one other person was going to figure it out. Poor Nino was _definitely_ on the verge of spilling the truth to Adrien...which wouldn't have been so bad if Adrien wasn't _the_ highest statistical risk around for becoming an Akuma's minion...not that Nino knew that.

Fighting back the urge to panic, Sarah hurried after where Nino had led Adrien.

"Hey!" she called out, then gave appropriate pause as if suddenly noticing the atmosphere between the boys, "Um...is this a bad time?"

"Uh...what is it, Sarah?" Adrien asked.

"Well...I think Marinette was looking for you to ask if you guys wanted to go to lunch together, but I'm not actually sure?" Sarah tried, fingers crossed behind her back, "I might have misheard, but I thought...I'd shoo you her way?'

"Oh, uh, want to go find out?" Adrien asked Nino.

"Ah, yeah, sure!" Nino agreed sheepishly.

"Cool, I saw her over that way," Sarah pointed.

She waited, following behind them, then, as the opportunity presented itself, grabbed Nino and yanked him down into a bush.

Nino was obviously startled by this, "What are you-?!"

"Shh!" she hissed at him, "You were about to tell him, weren't you?!"

Nino jumped, "Wh-wh-what?!"

Hopefully no one would notice the dancing bush.

"Didn't your Kwami warn you not to tell anyone?!" she demanded, still keeping her voice low, and on the look-out as Adrien walked over to Marinette and Alya. Miraculously, he hadn't noticed his friend was gone yet.

"He didn't listen!" a tiny, high-pitched voice wailed from his bag, making her jump a little.

"Okay, okay, keep your voice down, maybe he'll listen to me, right?" Sarah tried to reassure the little blue entity as she peeked out of Nino's bag to give Sarah a teary-eyed look.

"Come on, he's my _bro_ ," Nino looked torn, "And I _know_ I can trust him."

"Yes, Adrien is definitely someone you can trust, under _normal_ circumstance," she told him, "But Adrien also has a habit of prioritizing other people during an Akuma attack, and that leaves him vulnerable. Do you have any idea how many times he's been turned into an Akuma's minion? _Way_ too many times. So, as long as Hawkmoth is making crazy Akumas that could potentially brainwash your friend into blabbing secrets, it is _not_ safe to share this with him."

Nino seemed to consider that, but he still wasn't convinced, "But I can't lie to my bro."

"Then don't," she supplied.

His jaw dropped a little, "Wait, but you just said-"

"Look, all you have to do is explain to your friend is that you are currently protecting a secret that is _not_ yours to tell, and that it has you a little stressed, but that you _do_ have someone you can talk to about it, so you'll be okay," she pointed out, "You have your Kwami, and for better or worse you have me too, so you'll get through this, okay?"

"...but...what about when I have to run off and...you know?" Nino asked.

"I don't think you have to worry about that so much," Sarah smiled a little, "Alya always runs off to get footage, and Adrien and Marinette tend to busy themselves making sure everyone _else_ is okay when an Akuma happens, so if they see you running to safety they won't question it. And on top of that, you have me to back you up if they ever question why you're gone. It'll work out, okay?"

Finally, Nino began to look a little relieved, but now he had a different question in his eyes, "No offense, but...why are you helping me? And how did you know I was...?"

"According to Ladybug, I'm a meddlesome meddler," Sarah supplied, looking back to see Adrien was now _very_ confused as to why Nino was gone, " _And_ I'll tell you the rest later. Just tell them you fell in the bush, do _not_ mention me _whatever_ you do, _go_!"

The expressions on his friend's faces when Nino stumbled out of the bush were quite comical.

"Are, uh...you okay?" Adrien asked, partially concerned, partially amused.

"Can we...just pretend I did _not_ just come crawling out of a bush?" Nino cringed.

"What, did your precious had get blown away or something?" Alya's voice carried high amusement.

Nino just laughed sheepishly in response, "What are you, psychic?"

"Called it!" Alya cheered with a grin, then pulled her boyfriend into a one-arm hug, "So, you joining us for lunch?"

"You bet!" he brightened.

Sarah waited until the group left, then carefully extracted herself from the greenery. A teen from another class gaped at her.

"Be careful, apparently this bush eats hats," she supplied before hurrying off.

Thankfully, it seemed the boy didn't mention her odd behavior to anyone after that, since she really didn't need a certain trio growing suspicious.

…

She managed to get Nino's number from the ever-helpful Rose after lunch before class, and shot him a text soon after.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Here's my number, do NOT let anyone see you talking to me, okay?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [who is this?]

 **Sarah:** [Anyone over your shoulder?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [no]

 **Sarah:** [It's me, Sarah. I got your number from Rose.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [ok cool that would have been freaky otherwise lol]

 **Sarah:** [Now remember, we don't want people suspicious, so don't interact with me without a valid reason, ok? We don't actually talk much normally, so it would be weird otherwise. Just use this number to contact me when you need something, alright?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [ok gotcha]

 **Sarah:** [Also, I can explain things better after school if you have time. I figure you have some questions.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [yes! Totally! Where to?]

 **Sarah:** [I dunno, you know Paris better, where's a quiet place where we won't be noticed?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [what like a bush?]

 **Sarah:** [We do not mention the bush again. Ever.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [hey if Alya gets to tease me about it I get to mess with YOU about it]

 **Sarah:** [Sorry about that, but you WERE about to make a huge mistake, and I didn't have a lot of options, okay?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [point but still did it HAVE to be a bush?]

 **Sarah:** [It WAS the only hiding spot between you guys and Marinette, so apparently the answer is yes.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [right speaking of you totally set that up didn't you?]

 **Sarah:** [What? Sending Adrien to ask if Marinette was planning to ask him to lunch?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [yeah that

 **Captain Obvious:** [Alya was singing your praises]

 **Sarah:** [It was honestly the first excuse I could think of to distract Adrien...I guess even my subconscious is out to meddle, lol.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [I never even realized you meddled that much]

 **Sarah:** [If you ever want to make Ladybug mad, tell her she should return my Dopplebug gear.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [wait what?]

 **Sarah:** [My Ladybug costume, the one I used to make everyone think there were multiple Ladybugs. I may have used it one too many times for her liking, but in my defense I was HELPING by playing the distraction...she confiscated it, and still hasn't given it back. Not that I'd need to really use it anymore, now that Foxy can just whip up an illusion, but, you know. LB really doesn't want me pretending to be her, especially since I'm just a civilian, lol.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [okay

 **Captain Obvious:** [I need some time to process all that holy cow]

 **Sarah:** [Point is, I'm a lot more meddlesome than most people think, lol]

 **Captain Obvious:** [haha noted]

 **Sarah:** [Hey, it's almost time for class to start. Have you thought of a place to meet up yet?]

* * *

There was a pause. Sarah smirked.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [This is why I told you not to bring up the bush. ;P]

 **Captain Obvious:** [XP

 **Captain Obvious:** [ok how about the museum? We can just pretend we ran into each other if someone notices us right?]

 **Sarah:** [True, I guess, but why would either of us go to the museum alone?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [I felt like looking at old stuff and my girlfriend and bro were busy?]

 **Sarah:** [That would only work for sure if you actually asked them first, and that could result in you going to actually LOOK at "old stuff" with someone who is not me, thereby defeating the purpose.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [LYING IS HARD!]

 **Sarah:** [That's kind of a good thing.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [totally but still]

 **Sarah:** [You know what? Just meet me at my family's apartment. My dad will be at work today, and with the right story my mom will never tell a soul you were there. Like you needed help with some homework, and that we DON'T want a mutual friend to find out you were hanging out with me for whatever wacky teenage social reason...

 **Sarah:** [Seriously, don't tell anyone.

 **Sarah:** [Alya would probably kill me.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [works for me

 **Captain Obvious:** [and she would probably kill me too]

 **Sarah:** [Also, you should probably delete a lot of this conversation later, just in case someone messes with your phone.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [right apparently Marinette has a problem with that so I'll be careful]

 **Sarah:** [Wait, what?]

* * *

Nino, now at school, saw Sarah gaping at her phone, and panicked.

* * *

 **Captain Obvious:** [autocorrect!]

* * *

Nino winced at the disbelieving look.

* * *

 **Captain Obvious:** [forget I said that?]

 **Sarah:** [Are you telling me she STEALS PHONES?!]

 **Captain Obvious:** [no?]

* * *

Sarah then proceeded to double-over laughing. As she was sitting on a school bench, several students paused to give her odd looks.

* * *

 **Captain Obvious:** [ok why is that so funny?

 **Captain Obvious:** [dude look at you phone

 **Captain Obvious:** [duuuuuuuuude]

 **Sarah:** [Sorry you had to see that. I won't implicate you, but one day I will probably be teasing her about this, for certain reasons I cannot currently explain.]

 **Captain Obvious:** [ok?]

 **Sarah:** [Back on topic...DO you remember where I live?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [I think so?]

 **Sarah:** [JUST in case, here: _**link**_ ]

 **Captain Obvious:** [cool, thanks!]

 **Sarah:** [Oh! One last thing. What does your Kwami eat?]

 **Captain Obvious:** [marzipan CALA LILIES

 **Captain Obvious:** [and she kicks up a real fuss if theyre not pretty and PERFECT]

 **Sarah:** [Okay...I'll try to have something for her when you get there. ^_^]

* * *

…

Reminding her mother that Nino already had a girlfriend kept her from getting any funny ideas, luckily for Sarah. So soon enough Sarah and Nino were left alone with their History homework, which Nino actually did need help with, and some snacks.

Seeing the coast was clear, Sarah offered the prettiest _calla_ lily marzipan she had managed to buy prior, set carefully on a small plate, "Are these alright?"

The pretty little Kwami flew out of hiding, looked the over the sugary cake-toppers critically, then let out a thoughtful hum, "The arrangement is a bit off, but not bad. Thank you, Mademoiselle Sarah."

Sarah looked at Nino, who offered a look that seemed to say, with utmost sass, "you see what I have to live with?"

"Just "Sarah" is fine. It's an honor to officially meet you," Sarah said.

"I am likewise grateful that you are helping my chosen," the Kwami bowed, "And I am called Duusu."

"Happy to help, Duusu," Sarah nodded in return.

"Alright, so...how do you know about Kwami?" Nino asked.

Sarah winced, "Well...I kind of accidentally unmasked Ladybug forever ago...and we kind of hit it off, so I know Tikki pretty well now."

Duusu perked a bit at the name, but having already begun nibbling on her snacks she continued to do so while she listened.

"Whoa, okay...so you know who Ladybug really is?" Nino asked.

"Yup, she wasn't too happy about it either," Sarah giggled, "But I helped her out by majorly confusing Alya, as well as the majority of Paris. And I think she's finally done trying to strangle me for overdoing it with the suit!"

"Yo-yo strike, right?" Nino raised a brow.

Sarah's face flushed, and looked away, "...I didn't expect Alya to show up like that, and NO ONE mentioned the Akuma could _fly_ , okay? I never _meant_ to face off with an Akuma!"

"Yeah, I can see why Ladybug would be upset," Nino told her.

"I know, I know...but I actually _was_ helping before that massive screw-up, Chat Noir can vouch for me," Sarah told him.

"He probably _loved_ having two Ladybugs around," Nino snorted.

"No, no, I'm _Dopple_ bug," Sarah grinned.

"That has Chat Noir written _all_ _over_ it..." Nino groaned.

"But it suits me purrfectly," Sarah grinned wider.

"No, nuh-uh, no, bad Sarah," Nino pointed a finger at her, "No cat puns."

"Didn't mean to ruffle your-"

"Don't you da-"

"-feathers," Sarah finished anyway.

"Noooooo..." Nino groaned.

"You're just so punable, it can't be helped!" Sarah told him, trying to look sympathetic and failing marvelously.

"Come on, dude, you wouldn't think it was so funny if you actually had to spend _hours_ with Chat Noir," Nino complained.

Sarah smirked secretively, "Who knows, maybe I'd take a few notes from the master."

"Yeah, no, please don't," Nino gave her a look, then sighed, "...how did you know I was Peacock Blue?"

Sarah sighed, "...you're about as subtle as a bright pink elephant dancing around in a tutu."

" _Dude_!" Nino gaped at her.

"Sorry, but watching you made me literally weep tears of frustration," she told him without a hint of humor, "Acting like the world is out to get you? Calm down, I _promise_ you _no one_ in our class suspects. I would know, I've been watching like a hawk because _you_ being antsy makes _me_ antsy. Please, just, _relax_ , okay? Insane as it is that I'm the _only_ one to figure it out, _clearly_ your secret couldn't be safer. Our class is _painfully_ oblivious."

Nino just kept gaping at her.

"So, yeah, you waving that red flag around is how I caught on," Sarah told him, "Apparently _my_ super-power is paying attention to abnormal behavior. And then you kept obsessing over your hat, which I guess I can understand, but _really_ , you need to relax a little, okay? Just, _relax_. If Kim tries to swipe it like the jerk he sometimes is, Adrien with his quick reflexes will keep you safe. If Alya swipes it, just let her. She'll give it right back if you act cute and complain about your head getting cold. Just play it cool, you're the chill one, remember? Be Chill Nino, you got this, okay?"

"B-but, if someone takes the Miraculous, then it will suck in Duusu and it won't be disguised anymore!" Nino told her.

"...okay, fair point, but hey: _decoy_ ," she pointed at herself, "Even if your pin does a flashy thing, I guarantee I can be more attention grabbing. I still have a few smoke pellets left from my Dopplebug escapades."

Marinette _had_ taken all the smoke pellets in her bag when she pulled the "confiscate" stunt, but Sarah still had a few tucked away in her room.

"I'm not saying it's a _good_ thing if people start grabbing your hat, but you need to pretend it's not that big a deal if it does happen, okay? It's fine if you make it clear that your hat is important to you, but, if you scream and throw a fit if someone so much as touches it, you're going to break the oblivious barrier faster than you can say "oops"."

Nino sulked, huffing a little.

"You're being too hard on him," Duusu frowned at Sarah, who blinked at her in surprise, "Like you said, no one else has noticed, so clearly he's doing a fair enough job!"

Nino was similarly surprised.

Sarah felt her face flush, and she looked away from the displeased Kwami, "...I'm not saying he isn't capable...I just want him to have more confidence, that's all..."

Nino blinked at her.

"He'll grow into his feathers soon enough," the Kwami told her, flying up closer so Sarah was encouraged to look, "He has the makings of a great and noble peacock! Just you wait and see!"

Nino blushed.

Sarah smiled softly at the Kwami, "I believe you. When he's not freaking out about something, Nino is one of the coolest guys I know. I'm sure he'll make you proud."

This pleased Duusu, who smiled and nodded.

Nino coughed, "So, homework?"

Sarah looked at him, then giggled, "No more questions?"

"I think I get it. You're a "meddler" who likes to stick her nose in Miraculous hero business, and you figured out I'm Peacock Blue so now you want to help me," Nino said, "And based on how obsessed you are with secrecy, and the fact that you're already protecting Ladybug's identity, I figure I'm in good hands."

Sarah laughed sheepishly, "Glad you think so. Ladybug really freaked out when I told her I knew...thank goodness for Tikki. I thought...well, I don't think Ladybug was going to really do much other than scream at me, but she was really intense about it, not that I can blame her, you know? It's part of why I don't like confessing when I discover people's secrets, it tends to freak them out."

Nino whistled, "...so you discover secrets often then?"

Sarah smirked a little and chuckled, "I like to think I'm pretty good at figuring people out, but my lips are sealed, so you'll never know."

Sarah turned to their books, trying to find her place again. Nino began to do the same, but then he frowned.

"...so, I really can't tell anyone else?"

 **"No,"** Sarah promptly affirmed in unison with Duusu.

Nino groaned, "...I wonder if the others have told anyone..."

"Of course they haven't," Sarah huffed.

"And how would you know that?" he asked.

He saw the ever-so-brief flash of panic in her eyes before she could douse it. Plus, she knocked her textbook to the floor. She was as smooth as ever, wasn't she?

"I already told you, you're all _supposed_ to be sworn to secrecy," she said, hurriedly scooping her book up and straightening in her seat, "I _have_ spoken to Chat Noir before, you know. And I still talk to Ladybug and Tikki every now and then. I'm pretty sure they haven't told anyone. I only know about Ladybug because she didn't realize I could _see_ her; _not_ because she told me."

"...and you wouldn't happen to know who Chat Noir or Foxy Rouge are too?" Nino eyed her.

Sarah blinked slowly, forcing a frown of confusion to hide how anxious that question made her, "And... _why_ would I know that? I already told you I found out who Ladybug is by _accident_. How could I _possibly_ be _that_ lucky?"

"If you were lucky enough to out-luck _the_ luckiest girl in Paris, and lucky enough not to get busted pretending to _be_ her..." Nino shrugged, "Just answer the question."

Sarah scoffed, hiding crossed fingers under the table in a perfectly casual manner, distracting from the action by leaning forward to lightly rest the side of her head on the heel of her other hand, "I may be lucky, but I'm _definitely_ not _that_ lucky. So, _no_ , I _don't_ know-"

"You're not crossing your fingers under the table, are you?"

Letting out a surprised scoff, Sarah raised her hand, wriggling her fingers, "Happy?"

"You were saying?" he waited.

"I know the identities of _two_ superheroes," Sarah insisted, hands still visible.

"No more?" Nino asked.

" _Seriously_? Does that even _matter_?" Sarah complained, dropping her hands in a huff.

"Is there a reason _why_ you can't tell me?" Nino threw back.

She felt her eye twitch, "...it's easier to keep secrets when people don't realize you _have_ secrets, Nino..."

He had the decency to look sheepish.

"...just...do me a favor and _never_ mention any of this to your teammates, okay?" she sighed, "I _really_ don't need Ladybug thinking I'm just running around uncovering secret identities on _purpose_...and I _definitely_ don't want any of them to somehow realize _your_ secret identity because they know I know who you are..."

"Yeah, uh, I won't tell anyone..." Nino squirmed a little.

"Then I'll just lay it out. _All_ of you know I know who Ladybug is, but, unless Ladybug tells you herself, you " _can't possibly know that"_. You are the _only_ one who knows I know other identities," Sarah spoke slowly, trying to ensure that Nino understood completely, "Chat and Foxy have their own reasons for keeping quiet about me knowing their identities, and I really hope it _stays_ that way, because Ladybug. Will. _Not_. Be. _Happy_. With. Me."

"...alright...Peacock Blue officially knows nothing about Sarah McCoy, or what she may or may not know," Nino raised a hand in a solemn, slightly exaggerated oath.

"...okay, I'm gonna trust you on that then..." Sarah told him.

"...but _while_ we're on the topic of you knowing who everyone is..."

Sarah groaned.

"... _are_ you taking pun lessons from Chat Noir?" Nino accused.

Sarah grinned.

"Stop. Don't let him corrupt you any further."

"Sorry, you're not my mama-bird," she grinned wider.

"You did _not_ just say that."

"She _did_ just say that," Duusu commented, slightly bewildered.

Nino face-palmed.

"Yes I did, Duusu, yes I did," Sarah snickered, enjoying the situation far too much.

Eventually they stopped goofing off and managed to work on a _little_ bit of homework before Nino went home. Sarah almost made it to the safety of her bed before her phone received a text.

...

She began to regret. She began to regret so many things. Nino was a great guy, he really was. And she adored him, she really did. But it had been over a _week_ already and the boy just kept texting and calling her to the point she wanted to _scream_.

"Nino, baby-bird, we have _class_ tomorrow," she groaned into the phone, looking sadly between her desk clock and her unfinished homework, "Can you please leave it alone for tonight and go to sleep? It's really not as big a deal as you're making it out to-"

"It's absolutely a big deal! Foxy used me as a launchpad! A LAUNCHPAD! She has absolutely no respect for me, and I don't know how I'm supposed to trust her to watch my back when I don't even know where _her_ back is! Not to mention the fact that she steps on my tail every chance she gets! What is her problem anyway?!"

"She thinks you're a huge drama queen, and she's ticked off because half of her friends are bigger fans of you than her," Sarah rattled off, "And she thinks _you_ are constantly trying to _trip_ her with your tail. It's not _her_ fault it drapes along the ground like that. She's _not_ stepping on it on purpose... _most_ of the time."

"Ha!"

"Dude, _point_ is, you guys could totally get along better if you stopped _nagging_ on each other all the time," she huffed, "Be the bigger man, and... _please_... _stop_ using me as an outlet for your complaints. This was _not_ part of the job description."

"You said you'd help!"

"When it was _serious_!"

"This is _seriously_ stressing me out!" he retorted.

"You have a _Kwami_! Can't you just vent to _her_?!"

"But Duusu starts _crying_! I just can't handle all these sparkly tears, man! It's worse than kicking an _entire_ _boxful_ of _puppies_!"

Sarah spared a moment to snag her pillow off her bed, and screamed into it.

"Sarah? You still there?"

"Nino, I swear, if you don't drop this for tonight, I am going to convince Alya that you secretly have a crush on Foxy," Sarah threatened, seriously entertaining the idea.

It _would_ be hilarious.

"Y-you can't do that!" he gasped.

"Baby-bird, I can and I will if you don't stop pushing my buttons," she promised, "Now stop being a drama queen, do your homework, AND GO TO BED."

"... _how_ did I end up with two moms?" he huffed.

"Blame Hawkmoth, that's what I do," she offered.

"Ah, good plan."

"See you tomorrow, Nino."

He sighed in resignation, "Night, Sarah."

…

Alya and Nino kept insulting each other, to their faces, and neither of them seemed to realize they were doing it. Apparently, the Fox and the Peacock were a bit at odds with each other, and they weren't afraid to nitpick each other in civilian form. It was honestly a miracle that neither of them managed to accidentally blow their cover with how passionate the arguments became a few times.

Though it _was_ kind of funny that Marinette took Nino's side, while Adrien took Alya's. These kids sure knew how to play irony for all it's worth. Apparently, Marinette still found the bouncy Fox a tad annoying, and Adrien had issues with how well Ladybug got along with the new guy...though he cooled down about that later, especially after Blue let it slip that he already had a girlfriend.

In any case, Nino and Alya very soon realized they had reached an impasse. Both their best friends had turned traitor to the other side, and their argument had few willing supporters for either side. Most of their classmates either stayed out of it, or didn't really have a strong opinion either way (Kim, for example, thought Foxy was hot, but he liked Blue's weapons better). Trying to gain support from family members had apparently not gone well either.

Sarah observed all of this with wearing patience, and hoped they would agree to disagree sometime soon. Unfortunately, she failed to realize something that concerned her directly.

There was _one_ last stage to the argument that both of them would believe would win the argument for them. There was _one_ person who knew _exactly_ why they _had_ to win the argument, and who would _surely_ choose _their_ side.

…

The arguing had started again earlier that day, but, at some point between morning and the beginning of lunch break, both parties managed to arrive at the same conclusion just before the class dispersed.

Nino and Alya shot each other questioning looks as both stood, but after a few glances it became clear that their goal was one and the same. Then, the race was on. Nino shot up the center aisle, dodging past classmates as fast as possible, and Alya, rather than waste time circling around the back, took the shortest route and practically threw herself over the target's desk, giving Nathaniel quite the start.

" **Sarah**!" they said it at the same time, causing said girl to lurch back dangerously in her seat, looking between the duo with wide, startled eyes.

Nino and Alya briefly glared at each other, before crowding in more on their bewildered target.

"Foxy Rouge-!"

"-or Peacock Blue!"

" **Which one do** _ **you**_ **think is better**?!"

Rolling her eyes, Chloe decided her time was better spent elsewhere and waltzed out of the room, with Sabrina right at her heels.

Nathaniel looked like he was trying to inch out past Alya, wearing a slightly irritated look, but all progress screeched to a halt as Sarah suddenly slammed her hands on the desk, startling everyone as she stood up abruptly. She wasn't looking at anyone, but the anger rolling off her was almost tangible.

"Right _now_? I think they're _both_ annoying idiots who need to STOP BICKERING LIKE AN OLD COUPLE and GET ALONG! And the same could be applied to the two of _you_!"

In the stunned silence that followed, Nathaniel quickly shot out past Alya and scurried away. Nino and Alya gaped at Sarah in shock, and Sarah was making a face that said she'd regretted everything the moment the words finished gushing out.

"...sorry, I...I've had a rough week," she struggled to speak above a whisper, absolutely mortified with herself, "Sorry, that was really harsh, I'm sorry..."

She refused to look at anyone as she sat back down, hunkering down in her seat as far as she could go. She knew everyone still in the room was staring at her.

"I'm sorry," Nino looked ashamed, "I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that."

" _We_ shouldn't have," Alya agreed, regretting it as well.

"No, really, it's fine, I..." Sarah inhaled shakily, "...you know, I _really_ love all of the Miraculous Heroes. _All_ of them. And...I just really wish they could learn to get along. All this fuss is just... _silly_. Sure, Peacock Blue is a drama queen, and sure, Foxy Rouge has some anger issues, but they're both _amazing_ people, and I just wish you guys would stop pitting them against each other when they're supposed to be _teammates_...and I'm sure your best friends will agree that we all want to see you two happy and not squabbling again...please."

The couple shared a look, and sighed.

"Maybe..." Nino started.

"...we _have_ been a little ridiculous lately," Alya finished.

Nino smiled softly at her, offering her a hand. Sarah pulled her stuff out of the way as Nino helped Alya slide across and off the desk, keeping a hold on her to make sure she didn't stumble. Sarah blushed at the way they were just _looking_ at each other, and started inching out the other way.

Losing interest, Kim and Max filtered out of the room.

"Sarah's right, both heroes are great, and they should learn to be a team," Nino said.

Alya nodded, "...and I guess it's fine if the Peacock Blue is your favorite hero..."

"...my favorite hero is _you_ , Alya Cesaire," Nino promised.

Sarah, just finishing her slide off the desk bench, struggled to suppress a very excited squeal. Rose was practically melting on the other side of the room. Adrien was beaming with pride, and Marinette was giggling behind her hands, eyes bright with joy.

Alya was visibly red despite her skin tone, "I'm, um, not a hero though, Nino..."

"You're one of the bravest people I know, and you're just as amazing as any super-hero," he told her sincerely.

His gold eyes flew wide when suddenly she was kissing him, but rather than question it he just pulled her closer and kissed her back.

As if inspired by the romantic display, Mylene and Ivan left the room holding hands. Alix rolled her eyes, but walked out with a less-than-disgusted expression. Sarah met Rose and Juleka at the bottom of the stairs, and they shared quiet giggles as they slipped toward the door. Wearing a slightly conspiratorial look, Adrien and Marinette followed the trio out of the room.

It was anyone's guess how long it took Alya and Nino to realize they had been left behind.

…

To Sarah's great relief, Blue and Foxy both began offering metaphoric olive branches to each other. Alya and Nino were both surprised at the growing change in their teammate, and took Sarah's "I told you so" with half-hearted eye-rolls.

Not to say Foxy and Blue didn't continue to bicker on occasion, but they were working on it, and they were working _together_.

Now, wasn't there something else Sarah was supposed to be worried about? Studying for finals? She was in pretty good shape, all things considered. She was sure she would do well, and there would be no problems when she enrolled in her old school in Ireland-...oh...

Right, she was about to move back to Ireland. Whoops.

…

Chapter End

* * *

Yes, my insane fangirl soul still believes in Peacock Nino...THE SIGNS HAVE DRIVEN ME TO THIS, I CAN'T JUST DROP THIS HAT ON A SPOILER OF QUESTIONABLE ORIGIN AND INTENTION! If you've seen my tumblr, you'd know how much I rant about this, lol...I followed the same thought-processes that led me to believe in Fox Alya and Bee Chloe WELL BEFORE THE SPOILERS (not that I'm the only one, nor did I come up with these predictions on my own, but still, I RESEARCHED AND I BELIEVED).

And yes, I went with Foxy instead of Renard or Rena, and Peacock instead of Paon (And I nick-named him "Blue"...seriously, he's a DJ, why NOT have a name connected to music? THE PUNABILITY! WE NEED THIS, OKAY?!), and Hawkmoth instead of Papillon, even though I'm still using Chat instead of Cat...I blame this ridiculous Modern American AU I have stashed away (unfinished, obviously) that I keep playing with...Chat just has so much more punability in English, and we all know Adrien just can't pass up a purrfect opportunity for a good pun...and it's like with Princess Tutu, I watched the sub first, I WILL NOT CALL AHIRU "DUCK" EVEN THOUGH IT MAKES SENSE TO, OKAY?! And I just can't bring myself to call Chat "Cat"...so, yeah, and then because of my silly AU I tend to call all the other superheroes/villian by their English names...which is easier because I don't want to put my foot down on whether it's Renard or Rena...ugh. Anyway, reasons, you have them now, lol.

This fic is pretty Sarah-centric (since I know her mind better than any of the other characters, and I hate supplementing a ton of little details that may-or-may-not hold true for the canon characters in order to make things flow better, soooo...it's easier for me to avoid writing those parts...), but I do throw out some nice canon-character snippets for you, don't I? And I really, really need some of this Peacock!Nino vs Fox!Alya rivalry in canon, I really, really, REALLY do. *^*

Marzipan? It's a decorative treat made from almonds, which nutritionally are good for eye health. Marzipan is typically made to be pretty, and with a lot of attention to detail. I highly suspect that the Peacock's power will revolve around "vision", so the symbolism in this particular treat caught my eye. ;P Marzipan is also really easy to come by in Paris, so why the heck not? And for the record, while this Duusu CAN put up with the more common rose design you can find everywhere, she REALLY prefers the calla lily one. I'm a symbolism fanatic, leave me alone.

Finally, notice how Alya and Nino both received their Miraculouses over a school break? I figure Master Fu had a little more wiggle room on the timing to bring in new members, so it seems logical to me that he would give the team plenty of opportunity to adjust to the changes. Next up is Summer Break! Which...is when Sarah is supposed to leave...okay then.


	6. I've Got My Eye On You

Chapter 6: I've Got My Eye On You

Things were finally starting to calm down. Really. Nino would get flustered every now and then, but otherwise he was back to being "the chill one" with the occasional flair of playful sass. As for the "alter-ego defensiveness", he and Alya were getting better at controlling the urge, thank goodness.

Watching these two mature into confident, level-headed defenders of justice, and observing as the teamwork between all four heroes _vastly_ improved, filled Sarah with a warm sort of pride. Things were definitely looking up.

Then the final weeks of school began to slip away, day by day, and Sarah was inevitably jolted back to reality. Her parents were already preparing for the move.

She was going to leave Paris. Maybe she could convince her parents to delay her own departure for an extra week or two during Summer Break, but that was about it.

And, unfortunately, not everyone was exactly aware of this fact.

"So, what about you, Sarah?" Nino asked, "Are you planning to go anywhere?"

She and Nino had been "talking a little more" over the past month, and while she had paused to chat with him, Adrien and Alya one morning before class (Marinette was late again, otherwise she would have been with them), the topic of Summer Break had come up.

"Uh..." Sarah had blanched, "...what?"

Adrien and Alya had both cringed.

"Sorry, I was just curious," Nino said quickly, probably thinking he'd accidentally crossed the "familiarity boundary".

"...my family is moving back to Ireland about two weeks after school's out..." Sarah explained in a soft voice.

His eyes bugged, and he gaped at her.

"S-sorry, I thought everyone knew..." she told him, looking to Adrien and Alya for confirmation.

"Yeah, she explained it to the whole class the day she transferred..." Adrien looked between them in concern.

"A-ah...right..." Nino tried to recover, more going along with it than remembering the event.

Considering it had only been a little over a month since they'd become "allies", it wasn't too surprising that the information could have flown over his head.

"I _would_ stay if I could-!" Sarah blurted, then flushed, "U-uh, I mean...s-sorry, I should probably go work on my maths assignment! See you guys in class!"

"Wha-Sarah! Wait a minute!" Alya called after her in concern.

Sarah only waved back with a forced grin, and then kept going. She went straight to her classroom seat, and dropped her forehead to her desk.

Of all the inconsiderate things to say, ugh. She should have just changed the subject. Her and her stupid mouth.

Her stupidly honest mouth.

She wanted to stay. The thought of moving had her stomach churning now. No, she wasn't going to get Akumatized over this! Nope, nope, nope! She did not need evil magic powers to try something stupid in an attempt to keep from moving! Brighter side, she wouldn't be at risk of Akumatizing in Ireland! Yup, positive thoughts! She had this in the bag! Right along with all her luggage...ugh...

She sighed for who-knew-what-time, then felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up she saw the hand belonged to Juleka, who was standing next to her with Rose hovering worriedly at her side.

"Hey guys," Sarah smiled, "Sorry, I stayed up a little late studying, that's all."

"...we heard you," Juleka said.

"When you were talking with Nino," Rose specified, her usual cheeriness muted.

Sarah's flush returned, "Uh...i-it just caught me off guard a little, you know? I thought everyone already knew I was moving..."

"...can we hang out over lunch today?" Rose blurted.

Sarah blinked in surprise, and though she blushed again, she smiled, "Do you guys wanna come over to my place? Maybe we could fix lunch together?"

Rose practically illuminated, "That sounds wonderful!"

"I, uh, don't cook much, but that...sounds fun," Juleka agreed.

"Alright, I'll let my parents know then," Sarah grinned, pulling out her phone.

Ever since her birthday, she'd been spending a lot more time with the two of them, and her parents wouldn't be the least bit surprised that she was inviting them over. There was nothing crazy happening at her home currently (no box-packing frenzy just yet), so she trusted her parents wouldn't mind, _especially_ if she was volunteering to make lunch so they wouldn't have to. A quick text conversation proved this theory correct, and in a matter of minutes she was discussing meal-plans with her friends.

Before she had to put her phone away, she also sent a text to Nino, promising to talk to him after school.

…

When she video-called Nino that evening, it wasn't so much _Nino_ that had something to say about her leaving Paris. It was _Duusu_ that kicked up a fuss.

"You can't leave!" the teary-eyed Kwami wailed, "Why are you saying you're going to leave?! Didn't you say you were going to help us?! You definitely, absolutely, _cannot_ leave!"

Nino did his best to calm Duusu down, but Duusu was determined to get answers.

Sarah took a breath, and slowly explained, "...my mom is Irish, and my dad is French with Irish lineage. When my mom and dad married, they knew they wanted to make their home in Ireland. The only problem was that soon after that my dad was offered a career opportunity in France he couldn't refuse, so from when I was 3 and until I was 8 we lived in Orléans. We moved back to Ireland after that, and it was _supposed_ to be permanent, but last year my dad learned he was needed to finish an extension of the project we'd thought was finished. Since it would take almost an entire year, we decided we would live in Paris near my father's relatives for that time, and that we would return to Ireland again after it was all finished...Ireland is my home, Duusu. I'm sorry...but I have to go back."

"Isn't there _something_ you can do?" Duusu still blurted.

"...Duusu...I'm trying really hard not to let this get to me...I'd _never_ forgive myself if I got Akumatized right before safely leaving the danger zone..." Sarah swore, "...and really, you guys will all be a _lot_ safer if I'm not where Hawkmoth can try to use me against you...and you can always call me whenever, okay? It's not like I'm moving to the other side of the world, I'll only be a few hours away by plane, you know?"

"I guess...Ireland really isn't _that_ far away," Nino seemed to agree.

"I'm not abandoning you guys, I promise," Sarah asserted, "I can visit whenever I find the chance. I'm sure one of my relatives wouldn't mind letting me stay over for a spell if I asked."

"...I understand that this move is important to your family," Duusu spoke up again, her voice steadier, but still echoing with desperation, "But what about you?"

Sarah looked away, "Duusu, please, nothing will change even if I _do_ admit I don't want to leave..."

"How can you have your answer if you don't even ask the question?" Duusu challenged, "Do your parents have _any_ idea that you feel this way?"

"...I'll only make them worry by saying it..."

"You can't just bottle it all up inside! If you lie to your true feelings, all you will find is suffering!" Duusu spoke with fierce passion, "And even if it will change nothing, be honest with your family! Hiding the truth of your heart from them will only drive a wedge between you and your loved ones! You _must_ be honest!"

Sarah had seen Duusu upset many times, but rarely had she seen her angry. The wisdom of many ages filled this small entity, and Sarah knew these words did not stem from Duusu's selfish wants, but were instead born out of love for the youths she watched over. Such words were not so easy to ignore, and they echoed within her heart.

"...alright, Duusu..." Sarah said softly, "...it won't change the fact that my family is moving the Ireland, I already know that for certain, but...I'll take your advice, and be honest with my parents."

Duusu deflated, and nodded, "...I do not want you to leave...but if you must...I hope you will be happy in Ireland, Sarah."

Tears in her eyes, Sarah bowed her head, "Thank you, Duusu."

…

After ending her discussion with Nino and Duusu, Sarah tried to focus on her studies for a while...but Duusu's words weighed down on her. After re-reading the same line for way too long, she finally gave up, and left her room to see what her parents were up to.

As if Fate was outright declaring its support for Duusu's position, both her parents stopped to look at her, and noticed her hesitant stance.

"Sarah? Is something wrong?" her mother asked.

There are moments in life when everything seems prearranged, and then everything just falls into place, as if puppet strings were guiding you to the end of the dance. Sarah's mouth opened to answer, and for a moment it felt almost detached from her as it began to speak.

"Mom...Dad...I'm not expecting anything to change by saying it...but someone said I should be honest about this, so...I-I just wanted to say...I really really _really_ don't want to leave Paris!" she spat it out quickly, cringing where she stood. If her first few words had been the gentle start of roller-coaster ride, she was already in the midst of the first great plummet, and nothing would stop her descent until she hit the bottom, "I-I really love it here, and I love my friends, a-and I feel like I belong here, and I'm really going to miss it all, and I know you've always wanted for us to live in Ireland, I know that was where I was born and I'm happy we'll be seeing everyone again, and I do love Ireland too, but I...I-I'm just really sad that we're moving, and I really wish I could stay!"

Comforting hands were on her well before she finished, which broke the dams that much quicker. Her parents hugged her, and said nothing as she hiccuped in their arms.

"...you haven't complained about moving since you were eight," her mother said eventually, "You locked yourself in your room, and your Uncle Logan nearly broke the door handle trying to get it open."

Sarah let out a short laugh, "I really loved that room."

"I'd say," her father chuckled, "You moped around _pointedly_ for months!"

They all laughed a little, and migrated to a couch to sit together, daughter nestled safely between her parents.

"When you say you want to stay, how long are you thinking?" her mother asked, "We can always stay a few more weeks over the summer."

Sarah took a shaky breath, and let it out, "...I still don't know where I want to go in life...all I know is...going to school with my friends...is really amazing, and I'm going to miss it..."

She didn't see the way her parents looked at each other, looking conflicted, then seemed to come to some sort of silent agreement.

"...your...Aunt Therese has been complaining that the schools in Ireland aren't as good as they are in France," her mother said slowly.

Sarah looked at her, confused.

"She said..." her father caught her attention, "...that if we changed our minds...she wouldn't mind letting you stay here with her."

Sarah's eyes widened, and her jaw dropped, "Wh-what are you saying...?"

"Honey...we're still moving back to Ireland, you know how invested we are in our home," her mother said, eliciting a semi-understanding nod from Sarah, "But...if you _really_ want to stay...at least until you graduate...if you truly feel you want to stay in Paris for those two years..."

"...it's up for discussion," her father finished.

Sarah looked between them in astonishment, "...are...are you serious...?"

"If you want to stay longer, you can stay with your aunt," her mother rubbed Sarah's shoulder, "You're old enough to make some decisions for yourself, and we trust you to make good ones. If this really means so much to you...we'll understand."

Her parents or Paris, that was not an easy choice. Either way she would miss someone. Going for _months_ at a time without the familiar presence of her parents would be something entirely new to her. She would definitely see them over the holidays, maybe on certain weekends depending on how things worked out, and they could always call or text...but it wouldn't be the same, and she knew that.

However...her heart was now pounding wildly in her chest. Hope and excitement at the prospect of _staying in Paris_ was quickly rising inside...and she wasn't sure how to extinguish it. She was still young, and youthful enthusiasm was a force to be reckoned with.

She didn't _want_ to be separated from her parents, but with each passing second, she could feel her resolve begin to take root. She knew what she wanted, more than anything.

"...are you sure?" she asked again, searching their faces carefully for a sign that it would be too much after-all, "I can...really stay...? Till I graduate...I can stay?"

Her mother hugged her, and kissed her temple, and her father smiled softly, the sorrowful pride of a parent shining in his eyes (not tears, _never_ tears, he would insist).

"I take it you've made your decision?" he asked.

Sarah looked between her parents one last time, and finally, slowly at first, nodded in firm determination.

"Please let me stay in Paris until I graduate. I want to stay."

…

After discussing several provisos, terms and conditions that would have to be in place, and Sarah promising to uphold all of them and to "call them like crazy" while they were apart, her parents hugged and kissed her goodnight, and went off to bed. Setting herself up for _attempting_ sleep, and then sitting in bed with her lower half covered in warm blankets, she pulled out her phone and sent Nino a video-call request.

Most predictably, even though it was quite late, he was still awake.

"Did Duusu text you again?" he sighed.

Sarah bit her lip, and shook her head. It was hitting her all again, and she felt like crying again.

"...Sarah?" he asked, confused by her silence, and the odd face she was making.

She swallowed, trying not to sound as choked up as she felt, "I-is she awake?"

"Most unfortunately," Duusu whined, flying into view.

Sarah did start crying.

"S-Sarah?! What's wrong?!" Nino panicked.

"Thank you, Duusu," she choked out, "I-I told them...th-they...they said I could stay!"

Nino could finally distinguish the laughter mixed with the crying, and was significantly less panicked.

"I...I'm staying in Paris!" she finally managed, her wide smile still visible despite her hand in the way, "I'm not leaving!"

"...seriously?" he gaped, " _Seriously_?!"

She nodded with energy, "I'm staying!"

Duusu spun in the air with a musical cheer.

"I-I wouldn't have said anything if you hadn't said what you did, Duusu..." Sarah said. She was still a bit choked with emotion but it was manageable, "Thank you."

Duusu nodded, eyes bright and shining with joy, "I'm so happy for you, Sarah!"

"Thank you," Sarah repeated, laughing.

"But, wait...I thought this was a _huge_ deal to your parents?" Nino asked, thinking about it.

Sarah grew somber, and bit her lip before answering, "...I'm going to be staying with my aunt."

Boy and Kwami were both surprised.

"The plan is for me to go to school here until I graduate," Sarah explained, "During the breaks I'll probably be visiting my parents in Ireland, and I'm definitely going to call them every day. It's...going to take some getting used to, but this is what I really want, and they understand. I'll miss them, but...they gave me the option, and I made my choice. I'm staying."

"...whoa..." Nino gaped a bit, "...your parents are amazing..."

"I know! I'm still in shock!" she told him, "I was so confused when they started to broach the idea! I never expected it! But apparently my aunt told them she would let me stay with her if they wanted to let me continue my education here, and so they were already sort-of considering it? Speaking of which, I really owe her for that! Holy crow!"

"Even in shock you're still making bird puns," Nino snorted.

Sarah giggled happily.

"Man, the others are going to be so psyched!" Nino told her, "Marinette's going to have to redesign the cake though."

"...I'm sorry, what was that?" Sarah feigned ignorance.

"I said-...ah..." he blanched.

"Hmm?" she tilted her head, fighting back a grin with all her might.

"...d*mn, you already know, don't you?"

"What in the _world_ are you talking about, Nino?" she gave her best look of confusion, though a twitch in her cheek completely ruined the effect, and her tone wasn't nearly convincing enough, "Is there something I should know?"

"...fine, I'm just going to _pretend_ the surprise isn't completely moot point, because you'll probably do a much better job convincing everyone else that you're actually surprised," he gave up.

"Oh, I'm sure I'll be surprised if they throw it _now_ ," she chuckled, "You can't really have a going-away party for someone who isn't leaving."

He shook his head, but he was smiling.

Sarah hummed excitedly in the back of her throat, "Oh gosh, how am I going to tell everyone?! They're not going to _believe_ this! _I_ can hardly believe it! I _really_ wish there was someone here to pinch me or something!"

"If you call Foxy, she might take you up on that," he joked.

Sarah giggled at the mental image, "Actually she might lovingly throttle me even without me asking for it..."

Then, while picturing a very excited Alya, she suddenly realized a _slight_ issue, "Waaaaait... _aw_ , _cripes_..."

"What?" Nino started at the change.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, "...I just realized...now _you're_ going to have to pretend to be surprised, because no one is going to think I told you about this..."

"...uh..."

"Or stunned. Stunned works too. You can do stunned, right?"

He shook himself, puffing out his chest a little, "Yeah, I can handle it!"

"Because you know, Alya's probably going to text or call you right after the news hits her..."

He suddenly looked a smidgen less sure of himself.

"...well, I'm gonna text Rose and Juleka first. I'll warn you before I get to Alya or Adrien, okay?"

"...thanks."

"No problem."

…

By the early A.M., she had sent the same preliminary message to all her friends.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I'M STAYING IN PARIS! I'M NOT LEAVING THIS SUMMER! REPEAT: I AM STAYING! OoO]

* * *

There were a few drowsy students the next day, but not one of them was complaining (not seriously, anyway).

And Sarah _did_ get a party...a _congratulatory_ party. Most of the class made it, and Sarah didn't have to pretend she was overjoyed.

She joked about the fact that she wouldn't be getting her Dopplebug gear back anytime soon, now that she wasn't leaving the country, but she only saw a bright, shining new year of possibilities ahead of her.

She momentarily forgot that not _all_ possibilities ahead of her would necessarily be _pleasant_.

…

Sarah didn't scream when a _fifth_ miraculous holder appeared on the news that Summer, though she _was_ fairly shocked. She'd simply stared at "Honey Bee" in awe, thinking that for _once_ she might _not_ know the person behind the mask. Honestly, what would be the odds?

She never made the connection. Bright azure eyes, golden-blond hair pulled into a high ponytail, haughty attitude, and a suspicious new comb in a certain girl's hair in the same place as the Bee's miraculous? Nope, she never noticed.

She never noticed. But, when classes resumed, someone else apparently did.

…

 _Chloe_? Someone thought _Chloe_ resembled the Bee Miraculous Wielder? Sarah had laughed naturally with the rest of the class. It was an absolutely _ridiculous_ notion.

Only, Chloe then proceeded to _openly_ claim it was the truth, and she was _highly_ offended that they could believe otherwise. Sabrina backed her up enthusiastically.

Blank stares, and questions of sanity naturally followed. Adrien was clearly concerned, and even Marinette looked a bit worried. Chloe was a glory hog, sure, but this? Alya had shown Sarah the footage of the one time Chloe had pretended to be Ladybug, just before the Antibug incident, so she would have thought that Chloe had learned her lesson long ago. Therefore, unless Chloe had decided to become a comedian over the Summer (which was about as likely as Marinette declaring clothes were stupid and wearing nothing but baggy grey sweats for the rest of her life), Sarah was hedging toward the theory of chemical brain damage from too much of the wrong kind of beauty products, because _clearly_ Chloe had lost her marbles.

Seeing that no one believed her, the blond growled and snapped, "Pollen! Transform me!"

Striking a pose, Chloe waited...but nothing happened. Nothing happened, but five pairs of eyes widened drastically at the familiar command that only a Miraculous user (or a confidant) should know.

Finally realizing that _nothing_ _was_ _happening_ , Chloe and Sabrina began frantically digging through their belongings, looking for a "she" named "Pollen". Scrambling through her memories, Sarah realized with growing dread that that name _did_ belong to one of the two remaining Kwamis she knew very little about. And between that and Wayzz, Sarah was pretty sure which name would belong to a _bee_ Kwami.

No.

This was not happening.

Nope. Nope, nope, nope...

Had someone drugged her breakfast? Had a nightmare-themed Akuma blasted her on her way to school and she just couldn't remember? SURELY THERE WAS A LOGICAL EXPLANATION FOR THIS NOT BEING A REALITY, RIGHT?!

Chloe finally gave up when the teacher warned her to sit down, though Sabrina discretely kept looking. Nino was quietly flipping out, and bumbling with something under the desk. Sarah cringed when she felt her phone start to vibrate in her pocket. Marinette and Alya were tense in their seats, and soon Sarah felt two more vibrations from her pocket.

Much as she wanted to maintain the delusion that this was _so_ _not_ _happening_...Sarah knew that wouldn't fix anything. D*mn it.

When the teacher wasn't looking, Sarah risked a look at her phone. She quickly turned the vibrate off before checking her messages, wanting to reduce the odds of being caught with her phone out.

* * *

 **Night** **Owl:** [CALL LADYBUG!]

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [What do we do? Are you going to call Ladybug? Or would that validate the whole thing, or...?]

* * *

 **His** **Princess:** [I've got this. I'll just pretend you called me, and I'll track her down at lunch.]

* * *

Pretending that Sarah had contacted Ladybug would fool Chloe, and Alya and Nino would be none-the-wiser, but there was just one little thing left to worry about.

Adrien.

The boy looked like he was fully willing to dash across the room, grab Chloe, and drag her out to deal with it himself. Three heroes would not see that as anything being done about the situation, and Adrien would find it strange that Sarah had found it necessary to send in Ladybug without even letting him know.

Sarah quickly sent him a text, hoping it would deter him from doing something reckless.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [DOWN kitty-cat, I'm letting Ladybug know. She'll handle it.]

* * *

After a moment, he found a chance to check his phone...and frantically sent a text back.

* * *

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [NO! I'll handle this, okay?]

* * *

Oh for the love of-

* * *

 **Sarah:** [What?! No! You're going to risk your identity doing that!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [She'll listen to me, I'm not risking anything!]

 **Sarah:** [Have you FORGOTTEN about Marinette?! She just saw that whole fiasco too! Even if I DON'T tell Ladybug, SHE WILL!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [...do you think you can stop her?]

 **Sarah:** [HOW WOULD I DO THAT?!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Look, I know I'm asking a lot here, but if Ladybug finds out about this...she might not take it well.

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Please, this could be just the thing she needs to grow as a person! I just don't want her to lose this chance!]

* * *

Sarah suddenly had a dire need to scream into something, but most unfortunately all her scream-into-items were back at home. This boy was just _too_ kind for his own good.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [She LITERALLY just tried to blow her own identity to an ENTIRE classroom of people, and the only reason she DIDN'T was because she LOST HER KWAMI!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [If not for her, would you do it for me?]

* * *

He was going to be the death of her. Oh God, WHY was he so stubborn?!

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Adrien...even if I COULD convince Marinette to keep quiet, HOW would I explain myself if Ladybug found out I intentionally kept this from her?]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [I won't let her find out, I promise!]

 **Sarah:** [She is TOTALLY going to find out!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Come on, don't you trust me, Dopplebug? ;3]

 **Sarah:** [Trust you? Kitty-cat, you KNOW I'd trust you with my LIFE.

 **Sarah:** [Trust your terrible luck and Chloe's OBVIOUS ability to control her stupid selfish pride? I'm sorry, but I'd sooner trust Hawkmoth to surrender on account of the CHILDREN.]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [At least give me the chance to TRY? Please, Sarah?]

* * *

She just didn't have it in her to tell the sweet boy _no_. So she was going to have to pretend to ask Marinette not to tell Ladybug...but, then what? Marinette wasn't going to just let this slide, and she really _shouldn't_. _Someone_ needed to talk to Chloe, Marinette couldn't as herself without posing a serious problem (Alya would be SO mad if she found out Marinette was "friends" with Ladybug and hadn't told her, not to mention if she just _happened_ to connect the dots because of it...), and letting Adrien do it would be a bloody disaster!

Either Sarah was going to have to find some way to tell Adrien the n-word, or she was going to have to tell Adrien that Marinette had _already_ told Ladybug, and that her attempts to stop her had simply come too late...unless Marinette _wanted_ him to think she'd stomped all over his hopes and dreams on _purpose_ , which she doubted. She _could_ just skip the part where she told Marinette about Adrien, and simply remind her not to make Chloe cry _too_ much because Adrien would probably feel bad to see his childhood friend hurt...but in the end that would make things needlessly complicated, and she already had way too much on her plate secrecy-wise. Marinette would have to know that she had to deal with Chloe at the cost of her True Love's happiness...unless Sarah could find it in her to take the bullet and just tell the boy no.

Ugh! Wasn't there another way?! If only there was someone other than Ladybug who could try to stop Chloe from being so utterly thoughtless and selfish (ha, as if she would _ever_ stop), but there _wasn't_. There was no one in this room (or _anywhere_ , really) that could confront Chloe in Ladybug's stead, _with_ her permission. Other than Sarah herself, there was no one else with any "known connection" to Ladybug, and it wasn't like _Sarah_ could-...

...no.

Just, no.

No, she was _not_ going to-...G*DD*MM*T! NO!

It was at that moment that Sarah realized she had two options, and she hated both of them. One would involve Marinette questioning her sanity on TOP of Sarah having no choice but to...deal with Chloe herself. She did NOT want to deal with Chloe, she DESPISED Chloe! And Chloe probably wouldn't listen to her anyway and she'd _still_ have to "tell Ladybug" despite putting herself under rational scrutiny and having to DEAL WITH CHLOE.

But the other option would be to outright _deny_ the ONE favor Adrien had ever asked of her...and he would be so sad...and Marinette would be sad that she made him sad...and not only was this NOT OKAY, this was also a TERRIBLE way to start a new school year together! God, WHY did Adrien have to care about the most _awful_ person to ever grace their classroom?! WHY?!

And _why_ did she have to choose between a guilty conscience and trying to _reason_ with such an egotistical, spoiled, cruel, nasty tempered-UGH! This was SO _not_ the way she'd wanted to begin the school year, gosh dang it!

...and the choice was obvious. Much as she wished she could stall forever, this needed to be dealt with swiftly.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [ARG! FIIIIIIIIINE! I'll TRY to talk Marinette out of it...but I doubt she'll listen! She is fair and just, AND CHLOE REALLY SCREWED UP AND DESERVES TO BE CHEWED OUT!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [THANK YOU! I OWE YOU ONE!]

 **Sarah:** [More like you owe me NINE, you darn cat! XP]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [*heart emoticon*]

 **Sarah:** [Stop being cute, I want to be mad at you! Marinette is SO going to be judging me for this, and she'll have every right to be!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [You're my hero~!]

 **Sarah:** [Don't hold your breath, I'm texting her now, AND DON'T YOU DARE LOOK BACK AT HER WHILE I'M DOING IT!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Okay, okay, I BELIEVE IN YOU!]

 **Sarah:** [STAHP! I'M TOTALLY GOING TO FAIL, YOU'RE KILLING ME! XP]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Whispers: I believe in youuuuuuu...]

 **Sarah:** [-_-]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Sorry, stopping now. ^_^]

* * *

Steeling herself, Sarah reluctantly sent a message to Marinette.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [We have a problem.]

 **His Princess:** [What are you talking about?]

 **Sarah:** [Adrien's been texting me for the past several minutes. He figured Chloe was telling the truth, and he...SORT OF knows I can contact Ladybug? So he just begged like crazy for me to NOT tell on her...?]

* * *

Marinette openly gaped at her phone in shock, an action which, by _sheer_ _luck_ , the teacher did _not_ notice.

* * *

 **His Princess:** [OH MY GOD, WHY DID YOU TELL HIM YOU CAN CONTACT LADYBUG, AND WHY WHY WHY?!]

 **Sarah:** [He's going to be really sad if I tell Ladybug. He's worried that her Miraculous is going to be confiscated if I do...]

 **His Princess:** [UGH! SHE HAS NO RIGHT TO A MIRACULOUS AFTER THIS!]

 **Sarah:** [I KNOW!

 **Sarah:** [I tried to tell him, I really did!

 **Sarah:** [But he just went on and on about how this could be "just the thing she needs to grow as a person"! HE IS KILLING ME OVER HERE! HE IS TOO KIND HEARTED AND I AM ABOUT TO DIE!]

 **His Princess:** [GAHHHHHHH!]

 **Sarah:** [Look, as much as I hate hate HATE this idea SO MUCH...let me talk to Chloe? Try to convince her just how STUPID it is to tell people her secret identity? Give her...ugh, please just kill me now...a chance?]

* * *

While Marinette debated with herself, Sarah shot another text to Adrien.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Okay, now I need you to make THE SADDEST face at me. Just the most pitiful, pleading, kitten-eyed look you can manage, and just look REALLY SAD, okay?]

* * *

And so, he did. He looked back at Sarah, giving her EXACTLY what she'd asked for. It was like looking at a puppy-dog, as they stared at you through a window, soaking wet and freezing, and wanting nothing more than to be let into the warmth of a home...and Marinette quite literally had a front-row seat to the heart-wrenching spectacle.

* * *

 **His Princess:** [OH MY GOD FINE JUST MAKE IT STOP!]

 **Sarah:** [AT LEAST IT'S NOT DIRECTED AT YOU! GAHHHH!]

* * *

She then _quickly_ texted Adrien.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [OKAY OKAY STOP IT WITH THE BROKEN PUPPY LOOK! YOU ARE LITERALLY BREAKING MY HEART! HOW ARE YOU SO GOOD AT THIS OMG!]

* * *

She breathed a sigh of relief when he turned away to check his phone.

* * *

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Whoa, sorry? Um...model?]

 **Sarah:** [YOU ARE WAY TOO GOOD AT THAT DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Okay, okay! Sorry!

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Um...why did you want me to do that anyway?]

 **Sarah:** [Long story, but the short version is...it helped me convince Marinette to give Chloe ONE chance. JUST ONE!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [YOU TWO ARE LITERAL ANGELS!]

 **Sarah:** [Yes she is, I'll make sure she knows. And YES I am, because I'M going to be the one talking to Chloe...]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Wait, what?]

 **Sarah:** [Well it can't be YOU, do you WANT Marinette to be suspicious?]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [But I'm her friend! She'll listen to me! And...I hate to say it, but...um...I'm not so sure she'd listen to you?]

 **Sarah:** [She might be more willing when she understands that I CAN and WILL tell Ladybug that she screwed up if she DOESN'T listen to me.

 **Sarah:** [Besides, even if she might be more willing to listen to you, it puts you in a bad spot, trust me. It's better if you pretend you don't believe it, okay?

 **Sarah:** [I mean, can you imagine her CONSTANTLY using you as her alibi? Do you WANT Ladybug to get the wrong idea about you?]

* * *

She could see him cringe.

* * *

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [...okay...you MIGHT have a point...]

 **Sarah:** [And in this instance, I HATE that I'm right! *cringing emoticon*

 **Sarah:** [So just sit back, let me do my thing, and hope that...SOMEHOW Chloe listens to me...I am literally the only thing keeping Ladybug off her heels, and if I can't convince her, your last hope is to stick to Chloe like glue and then throw that...LOOK you just killed me with at Ladybug when she goes to confront her, or whatever you want to try, alright?]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Do you think that would actually work?]

 **Sarah:** [Ladybug might be resistant to kitten-eyes, but she is a SUCKER for puppy-eyes. NEVER TELL HER I TOLD YOU THAT! Though if you factor in CHLOE...I'd say it would be a close race. :/]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Okay, I'll keep that in mind!]

 **Sarah:** [I CAN NOT BELIEVE I AM HELPING YOU WITH THIS THIS IS SUCH A TERRIBLE IDEA AAAARRRRRGGG!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [You're an Angel~~~!]

 **Sarah:** [I SUDDENLY REGRET THAT I AM APPARENTLY RESISTANT TO AKUMATIZING! I WOULD BECOME AN AKUMA THAT WOULD ERASE ALL MEMORIES OF THIS INCIDENT SO I WOULDN'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS!]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Now you're just being dramatic.]

 **Sarah:** [XP]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Look, I PROMISE I will find a way to make this up to you!]

 **Sarah:** [I know you will, but I am still very much regretting everything right now.]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Come on, just start making a list! :3]

 **Sarah:** [Well FIRST on this list...notes from Max, because I am POSITIVE that neither of us are paying enough attention to this lecture, and his notes are going to be the best AND he won't really question why you're asking for them.]

* * *

And she had a feeling three other classmates were going to need those notes too.

* * *

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [It will be done!]

 **Sarah:** [...I'll think of the rest later, I need to focus on what I'm going to say to Chloe...

 **Sarah:** [Oh, wait, I've got a good one! How about you make me the Godmother of one of your three future children?]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Wait...why only one kid, and what makes you think I'll be having three kids?]

 **Sarah:** [Because your future wife's best friend has dibs on AT LEAST the first two, and she WILL have three kids, so help her.]

* * *

Even the boy's ears went red. Sarah struggled not to grin and cackle like a maniac.

* * *

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Are you talking about Ladybug?]

 **Sarah:** [Pawsibly~]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [You're killing me here. Come on.]

 **Sarah:** [I have a feeling satisfaction will bring you back...eventually. ;P]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Do not force my paw, I WILL use the Kitten Eyes TM on you.]

 **Sarah:** [All I can confess is that I KNOW who you will marry, and that your children will be pawsitively adorable, and that when I am the God-mother of your third child, I will tell them ALL ABOUT how adorably clueless you were as a teen. ;P]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [I hope you realize this counts as animal abuse.]

 **Sarah:** [One day you will look back on this day and laugh, my friend. ;P]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [:P Are you done teasing poor, helpless kittens with strings?]

 **Sarah:** [But there are so many strings! :O]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Didn't you warn me that it was the LITTLE THINGS that get you caught?]

 **Sarah:** [Oh no! Not my own words! OoO

 **Sarah:** [Lol, point taken, I'll talk to you later. :P]

 **Super Cheesy Prince:** [Lol, later. :P]

* * *

Sarah waited a moment before texting Nino and Alya the same message separately.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Ladybug is a NO, at least for now. Apparently I have been guilt-tripped into trying to talk to Chloe myself and attempt to make her see the error of her ways and NOT tell on her to Ladybug. -_- DON'T ASK I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT! YES I AM A MORON AND YES I REGRET THIS ALREADY SO DON'T ASK I BEG YOU!]

* * *

Alya responded first.

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [ARE YOU SERIOUS?!]

 **Sarah:** [I SAID DON'T ASK! *cringing emoticon*]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [WHY WOULD YOU TRY TO TAKE A BULLET FOR CHLOE?!]

 **Sarah:** [It's not for Chloe! AND I SAID DON'T ASK ME! I ALREADY WANT TO SCREAM!]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Girl, WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD ASK YOU TO DO THIS?]

 **Sarah:** [...someone who knows her well enough that he KNOWS that wasn't just an act, and who also happens to know that I know how to contact Ladybug because I MAY have told him so...and who is the only person in this room who still dares to hope that there is GOOD in her...]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [ADRIEN?!]

 **Sarah:** [YES! AND DID YOU SEE THAT FACE HE MADE AT ME?! I ALMOST ACTUALLY CRIED! I COULDN'T SAY NO TO THAT FACE! *wailing emoticon*]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Girl...WHY did you tell him you knew how to contact Ladybug?]

 **Sarah:** [You know I like to fangirl with him about her, and I sort of needed a reason why I knew certain things? IT MADE SENSE AT THE TIME, OKAY?]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Did you see me face-palm?]

* * *

Sarah had to tilt a little to see past Ivan...and sure enough, Alya was still grinding the heel of her hand into her forehead.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Yes...and I deserved it.]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Anyway, good luck with Chloe...girl, you're gonna NEED it!]

 **Sarah:** [Thank you, and I know. *cringing emoticon*]

* * *

Seeing her break, Sarah switched over to Nino's reply, which had appeared somewhere in the midst of her conversation with Alya.

* * *

 **Night Owl:** [its Adrien isn't it?]

 **Sarah:** [That obvious?]

 **Night Owl:** [you told him you know how to contact Ladybug?]

 **Sarah:** [Ugh, YES!]

 **Night Owl:** [welp good luck]

 **Sarah:** [Thank you, I'm gonna need it! *cringing emoticon*]

 **Night Owl:** [yup]

* * *

Yup, Nino was sharp, especially when it came to his bro, which made it all the more _insane_ that he _still_ had no idea his best friend was Chat Noir! Or that his _girlfriend_ was Foxy Rouge! HOW COULD THEY BE THAT LUCKY AND _STILL_ END UP IN THIS CHLOE SITUATION?!

Or maybe it was just Sarah's luck that sucked? She really wasn't sure by this point.

She felt the slightest twinge of regret that she hadn't fled the country while she'd had the chance. Just a _tiny_ twinge.

…

Lunch break finally rolled around, and Sarah hurried after Chloe, who looked dead-set on getting home ASAP.

"Hey, wannabee!" Sarah cornered the blond at her locker, who whirled around to shoot a furious glare at her, "Cute display back there. As a past Ladybug, I think you and me should have a little talk about it."

"I have nothing to say to a complete fraud like you!" Chloe shot back.

"Just you wait," Sabrina got feisty too, "After lunch we'll prove to everyone that Chloe is a _real_ hero, and _you're_ not!"

"Sabrina, are you really okay with Hawkmoth _targeting_ your best friend because she's drawing this sort of attention to herself?" Sarah retorted hotly, keeping her voice lowered so others wouldn't hear.

Sabrina's eyes widened in shock, "Wh-what?"

"It's bad enough she has Akumas targeting her for being... _Chloe_ ," Sarah bit back the urge to say something less polite, "But do you _really_ want Hawkmoth sending _more_ Akumas after her because he found out she's _Honey Bee_?"

Sabrina fell silent, looking between Sarah and Chloe with wide, terrified eyes.

"I can handle anything he throws at me," Chloe raised chin.

"Sure, just like you can keep tabs on your _Kwami_ ," Sarah shot back.

Chloe gasped in indignation, "Y-you...how dare you?!"

"Face it: you put yourself at risk, and you didn't even have the ability to transform to deal with the consequences," Sarah folded her arms, "And you're right, I never _actually_ possessed Ladybug's power, I was only _pretending_ because the _real_ Ladybug _needed_ me to. It was a carefully planned diversion, and she'll _gladly_ tell you about it if you ask. She _trusts_ me, and I don't plan on letting her down by ignoring your reckless behavior."

"Y-you really expect me to believe such rubbish?!" Chloe demanded.

"Even if you don't want to believe me, there are a number of students that could easily make it known to Ladybug what you just did, including me, and right now I'm the only one telling them to hold back, and _not_ because I want to, but because there's actually someone out there who wants to see you have this chance, whether or not you deserve it," Sarah told her, "And even if you don't want to believe _that_ , you should know yourself that Ladybug is very strict on protecting your identities, and she will be _furious_ if she finds out about this. Possibly even to the point of ejecting you from the team, I don't actually know for certain, I just know you _definitely_ won't like her reaction, whatever it is."

Chloe actually began to look...scared.

"So, I'm here to tell you, just _one_ time, that you have _one_ chance to make things right before it comes to that," Sarah continued, speaking slowly for impact, "You are going to make it look like you were just fooling around in class earlier, no matter _what_ it does to your pride, and you will NEVER try to blow your cover again.

"And if you don't? I can, and I WILL tell Ladybug, despite how sad it's going to make the person rooting for you, and I will _know_ I am making the right choice, because you have no right to abuse the Miraculous like that. It's already bad enough that we have Hawkmoth abusing the Butterfly's power! I will NOT stand by and watch you do the same to the Bee!"

Unbeknownst to them, from her hidden perch above them, the Bee Kwami's azure, gem-like eyes widened ever-so-slightly.

"You...you _dare_ compare me to that villain?!" Chloe snapped, but as much as she tried to hide it, she was clearly shaken.

"If you don't use your Miraculous for good, like you're supposed to, then that is exactly what it will start to look like," Sarah warned her, "You admire Ladybug because she's a hero, don't you? If you want to live up to her standards, then start acting like it. Stop being selfish and vain, and put your duty first and _prove_ that you are actually worthy."

It was clear that Chloe despised the fact that she was being lectured like this, and thus lashed out with whatever she could use, "Just who do you think you are to be telling _me_ what to do?! You don't even _have_ a Miraculous!"

The comment stung, somewhere deep down, but Sarah knew she couldn't show any weakness to the blond, and she had anticipated such an obvious comeback, "I do not have a Miraculous, you are correct, but as pretty much the only person who stands between you and the righteous fury of Lady Luck herself, I have given you a warning. What you do now is your own choice. I will _not_ feel bad if Ladybug finds out, but for the sake of someone else...I sort of hope you fix your act."

Seeing no point in further conversation, Sarah walked off to find her own locker. With a loud, proud "hmph", Chloe slammed her locker shut and stormed off, a worried Sabrina soon chasing after her.

Sarah nearly had a heart-attack when, right after opening her locker, a small, yellow and black-striped _something_ zipped up in front of her. The Bee Kwami stared for a moment before speaking.

"...your intervention is much appreciated. Thank you," Pollen nodded once, then zipped off after Chloe.

Sarah whipped around to watch her go, and hastily looked around to make sure no one else had seen the Kwami. No one had, and no one did. Pollen successfully vanished into Chloe's bag before anyone could see her. She was _fast_.

Shaking it off, Sarah quickly sorted her belongings and shut her locker. Never before had she felt quite so... _measured_ by a Kwami before. There had been something powerful... _authoritative_ about her, and just... _severe_. Not that Sarah hadn't been utterly shocked meeting a new Kwami before, but this one sort of made her want to do anything and everything to avoid finding out what happened when she was angry. The sharp-looking stinger didn't help.

Sarah noticed Marinette waiting for her in a quiet spot nearby, and hurried over to her, "Okay...I gave her a nice wordy speech, and warned her that I _will_ tell Ladybug if she doesn't straighten up...we'll just have to wait and see what happens after lunch, I guess..."

"...you okay?" Marinette asked gently, noting how worn out and unhappy she appeared to be.

"...how exactly do you guys get your Miraculouses?" Sarah asked with hesitation, after checking to make sure no one was around to hear, and though she did notice Adrien, lingering a short distance away and apparently waiting for her report, he was too far away to hear them over the hubbub of the student-filled space.

"...as far as I'm aware, all of us except for Hawkmoth received them from The Guardian," Marinette admitted, "He's never told me otherwise, so I'm afraid he _might_ have given the Bee Miraculous to Chloe by choice...which _has_ to be a mistake!"

Yup, that stung. Here Sarah was, diligently working to help the heroes in every way she could manage, and _Chloe_ was the one who was _chosen_ to have a Miraculous? Ouch. Ouch, ouch, _ouch_.

"Hey..." Marinette reached out, looking over the sudden, stubborn tears in concern.

"S-sorry...just...I _know_ it's ridiculous, but I think part of me sort of wanted to be a wielder too, even though I obviously _can't_ because I know things that would make me a _huge_ liability, and there's probably no Miraculous in existence I could actually use right..." Sarah's voice cracked a little, "...and I know it's stupid, but seeing _Chloe_ with a Miraculous, and how she has absolutely _no_ respect for it..."

She couldn't finish, but she didn't have to. Marinette understood, and pulled her in for a hug. Sarah was going to have to think of an excuse later if certain others noticed, but for the moment she just accepted the gesture and clung to the slightly shorter girl: an incredibly _amazing_ girl that Sarah was beyond honored to call her friend.

Admitting the small wish deep in her heart, admitting that she was actually the _slightest_ bit envious that she was surrounded by super-heroes yet could never become one, was not something she had ever expected to do. It was her pride to help, and she'd never wanted to hurt them by voicing the thoughts she was sure they all suspected, deep down. Yet here she was, admitting it to the one she probably admired the most of all, and she was surprised to feel _relieved_ by doing so.

"Even without a Miraculous, you are _definitely_ miraculous yourself," Marinette said as Sarah recovered, pulling back to look her in the eye.

Sarah chuckled, sniffling back the remains of her little break-down, "Somehow, I just might believe you."

"You're also insane for trying to help Chloe," Marinette added, but with no actual judgement.

"I _know_ ," Sarah groaned, "But anything for your future husband, right?"

"SHH!" Marinette hissed, looking around wildly to make sure no one had heard, then she noticed Adrien "casually" watching them from afar and squeaked.

Sarah covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, but managed to only grin when Marinette finally looked back at her, "So, I take it he's waiting for my update on Chloe, huh?"

"...you good now?" Marinette asked, looking her over for any remaining sign of distress.

"Much better. Magical friendship hugs will never fail," Sarah jested.

Marinette laughed lightly, "How about I get you something from my parent's bakery later?"

Sarah perked at that, then grinned, "How about macarons, or my yo-yo?"

"Macarons it will be then," Marinette replied, rolling her eyes in good humor before smiling at her, "Well, don't keep Adrien waiting. See you after lunch."

"See you!" Sarah waved her off, heading over to Adrien.

"Hey...is everything okay?" Adrien asked, uncertain.

Sarah shrugged, "Yeah. I was just a little exhausted after dealing with Chloe, and Marinette's an absolute angel, just like you said. And hey, I did what I could...I told Chloe to clean up her act, and warned her that I WOULD tell Ladybug if she didn't...for your sake, I hope it actually sticks with her. I suppose we'll see the results after lunch."

"Well, you've done what you can, right?" Adrien told her, "So go ahead and start cashing in on the favors. Just lay 'em on me, I'm _paws-itive_ I can handle anything you throw at me."

Sarah rolled her eyes at his antics, "Okay, how about _this_...I would actually like to see your team's reaction to an _entire_ Akuma battle _without_ your puns _or_ flirting. Just pick a fight when it's not a huge deal if everyone is dumb-struck, and tell me later how much it freaks them out, sound good?"

His jaw dropped, "No puns _or_ flirting?!"

"Banter is fine, just no puns," Sarah amended, "And just _one_ time. Unless you fail the first time you try, of course. I want an _entire_ battle free of flirting and puns, and preferable on camera, if possible."

"...so you wanted notes from Max, which I have," he pulled out his phone to wave it in emphasis before unlocking it and tapping away, "I'll send them to you now...and you apparently expect to be the Godmother of my third child, which I'm not entirely sure if you were serious about...and you want me to be super boring during an Akuma fight, and see how much it throws my teammates off...I guess I'll tell them later that I lost a bet with Plagg or something...okay, that makes three? What are the other six?"

She blinked at the genuine-sounding question, then laughed, "Okay, I wasn't entirely serious about the "you owe me one for all of your nine lives" thing...but I'll take it!"

He was slightly surprised by her surprise, but then smirked, "Well, I'm a cat of my word!"

"That you are, that you are," she grinned back, "I'll have to put some careful thought into this then, so I guess I'll tell you later when I think of them, alright?"

"Okay, you think about it, and I'll see you after lunch," he paused, "Unless you want me to treat you to lunch? And that one can be a freebie."

Sarah blinked at the offer, then smiled, "I appreciate it, but my Aunt is making me something really nice for lunch, so I'll pass this time."

She knew a certain trio would understand the gesture, but there were already odd rumors about her and Adrien, and on top of not wanting to push Chloe any further over the edge at the moment, she knew those rumors made Marinette cringe. And she really didn't want a "lunch date" with Adrien before Marinette had the chance to, as it probably infringed on a Girl Code, despite the innocent intentions.

"Ah, that's cool," he told her, slightly awkward, and too late she realized she'd inadvertently reminded him of how distant his father was. Before she could think of something to distract him, he changed the subject himself, "But...seriously, thanks for all this. I know you don't think Chloe deserves this chance, but...maybe she'll surprise us?"

Sarah shrugged, opting not to comment, "We'll see soon enough. See you later, Adrien."

"Later," he returned, hurrying off to where he'd left his limo waiting.

Finally finding herself alone, Sarah checked her phone. Several missed messages from Alya and Nino, as expected, and the photo-copy of Max's notes from Adrien.

Figuring Alya's rant _might_ be shorter, she checked it first.

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Girl, text me when it's over ASAP, okay?

 **World's Best Blogger:** [And I'm really sorry, I would have hung back, but it looked like Marinette was waiting for you, and she was totally trying to get me to leave, so I went along with it. I figured it was important stuff I'm "not supposed to know about", haha.]

* * *

Oh sh*t, oh sh*t, please don't be what that sounded like-

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Did she figure out Chloe was for real? She doesn't have a way to contact LB, does she? Do you need a hand throwing her off the trail?]

* * *

Nevermind, Marinette's secret was still safe, everything was fine. Whew.

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Wait...I forgot to tell you, oops, haha...I know LB confided in her, so you don't have to pretend, okay? I'm not mad at her either, I think it's awesome!

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Okay, maybe I was kind of mad for a little while, but hey, it's just another reason why she's such an amazing girl, am I right?

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Also, now that I've told you I know, I can totally tease you about trying to steal your gear from Marinette's house. ;P

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Anyway, point is, tell me how it went, and if you need anything, I'm just a text away! ;D]

* * *

Yup, Alya's rant was fairly brief.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Since we're talking about it now...it was totally your fault that Marinette caught me in her room, you totally failed as a distraction. ;P]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [WELL, maybe if I'd KNOWN you were USING me...;P]

 **Sarah:** [Teehee ;P

 **Sarah:** [Anyway, yeah, things are okay over here. Marinette figured Chloe was for real, so I got her to promise to keep it quiet, which wasn't hard because, well, ADRIEN. As for being able to contact LB...yeah, it's a little more complicated, since Marinette didn't find out LB's identity like I did, but she has a way to contact her.]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Yup, that girl would do anything for that boy, lol.]

 **Sarah:** [Also, I'm fine, no worries. Chloe was so shocked by some of the stuff I said she didn't try to threaten me or claw my face off, and hopefully she won't think to after this, lol!

 **Sarah:** [I basically told her to straighten up, or I'd tattle, with a whole lot of words, so it was actually a little tiring, lol, but I'm fine.

 **Sarah:** [We'll probably know what she intends to do when we see her after lunch break. I'm preparing for worst-case-scenarios, but hopefully she won't pull a stupid. *cringing emoticon*

 **Sarah:** [And on the bright side, Adrien promised me a little favor for all this, so shall we brainstorm ways we can use this for the sake of Project Hamster?]

* * *

Yes, Project Hamster was currently their codename for getting Adrien to fall for Marinette. They'd put a lot of thought into the name. It evoked the ideal of their mission (for all the things that had to align _perfectly_ before Marinette could get a pet hamster, obviously), without making it dead obvious if Marinette overheard them say it. It was also kind of fun to say. And, if Marinette caught on, they could always change the name later.

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Oh you BEAUTIFUL meddler you!]

 **Sarah:** [FINALLY someone who appreciates my hard work! XD]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Lol, but let's not worry about that until after we see what Chloe intends to do...wouldn't want her wrecking our brilliants plots, now would we? ;D]

 **Sarah:** [True, true, it will have to wait. :(

 **Sarah:** [Well, I gotta run, see you after lunch!]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Alright, just don't forget to let me know if Chloe tries to pull anything on you, k?]

 **Sarah:** [Will do! :D]

* * *

One last hurdle, and she could finally go home for lunch. Sufficient to say, she needed to refuel, so the sooner she was done the better. Hopefully Nino hadn't sent _too_ many messages, but he _had_ sent a few while she was busy texting Alya...and he was still texting.

* * *

 **Night Owl:** [would it be too weird if I stuck around?

 **Night Owl:** [its totally normal to hang back with my bro right?

 **Night Owl:** [because, you know, hes waiting for you to get done with Chloe

 **Night Owl:** [you're not answering

 **Night Owl:** [you silenced your phone didnt you?

 **Night Owl:** [crap

 **Night Owl:** [welp sorry he told me to go on ahead and I caved

 **Night Owl:** [should I hide out in the bush?

 **Night Owl:** [youre still not answering

 **Night Owl:** [nope too many witnesses

 **Night Owl:** [I feel horrible about this but im going on home before someone notices

 **Night Owl:** [at least Adrien should be able to keep her from strangling you or something if it goes wrong

 **Night Owl:** [right?

 **Night Owl:** [I mean hes not much for violence but he definitely wont let you get hurt

 **Night Owl:** [I trust him

 **Night Owl:** [but crap are you going to be okay?

 **Night Owl:** [if anyone asks I definitely did not change my clothes

 **Night Owl:** [and I definitely did not have an accident while texting and walking

 **Night Owl:** [don't you dare laugh im worried ok?

 **Night Owl:** [is it not over yet?

 **Night Owl:** [why arent you texting back?

 **Night Owl:** [please text me back

 **Night Owl:** [im not panicking

 **Night Owl:** [definitely not panicking

 **Night Owl:** [oh God please tell me youre okay!

 **Night Owl:** [ok ok im coming!

 **Night Owl:** [ok I just saw Chloe drive by

 **Night Owl:** [wait

 **Night Owl:** [she didn't kidnap you right?

 **Night Owl:** [do I call the police?

 **Night Owl:** [or maybe I should suit up and save you?

 **Night Owl:** [I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO

 **Night Owl:** [oh youre reading this now

 **Night Owl:** [are you okay?]

 **Sarah:** [CALM DOWN!]

* * *

If he and Alya ever had kids, Nino would probably be the parent that lost all sense of sanity the first day of preschool. If he didn't lose it the moment his wife told him she was pregnant, anyway. And if Alya didn't strangle him for being a ridiculous worrywart during this hypothetical pregnancy.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I'm fine!

 **Sarah:** [Aww, baby bird, you didn't fall, did you?]

 **Night Owl:** [id rather not talk about it]

 **Sarah:** [Well, I'm definitely not laughing, but don't text and walk again, okay? You don't need to hurt yourself on my account!]

 **Night Owl:** [im fine

 **Night Owl:** [covered in coffee

 **Night Owl:** [iced coffee]

 **Sarah:** [Ah, at least it wasn't hot...still, yikes, sorry I had you so worried.

 **Sarah:** [But seriously, kidnapping?]

 **Night Owl:** [she couldve!]

 **Sarah:** [I doubt she'd actually do something THAT bad, especially with people around to see it...]

 **Night Owl:** [ok maybe not with witnesses

 **Night Owl:** [maybe I should have thought that through better]

 **Sarah:** [It's okay, I think the whole "reveal" thing has all a little rattled, you know?]

 **Night Owl:** [yeah definitely]

 **Sarah:** [Anyway, everything is okay for now. I told her off, told her to act like secret identities were something she actually cared about, and that if she didn't I would tell LB.

 **Sarah:** [We'll see how she decides to behave after lunch break.]

 **Night Owl:** [okay

 **Night Owl:** [tell me if she tries anything

 **Night Owl:** [and take your phone off silent so I can get a hold of you!]

 **Sarah:** [Yes, yes, I WILL let you know if I need somebirdie to save me. ;P

 **Sarah:** [And I will try to be more aware that your imagination gets the better of you when I don't reply right away, lol.]

 **Night Owl:** [stop talking to CN hes corrupting you!]

 **Sarah:** [Nope. ;P

 **Sarah:** [I'm gonna go get lunch now, I'll text you later, STOP WORRYING.]

 **Night Owl:** [XP

 **Night Owl:** [later!]

* * *

Finally done, Sarah let out a long sigh before jogging homeward.

…

Things were oddly quiet after lunch break.

When Chloe and Sabrina appeared, just as students were filtering into their respective classrooms, they kept to themselves. It appeared no one was interested in teasing the blond at the moment, but a few of the more obnoxious ones were clearly amused by her silence.

Marinette was late in returning to class, and appeared quite irritated for some unknown reason. Chloe smirked a bit at the girl's tardiness, but lost interest soon after.

Sarah was tempted to text Marinette and ask if something was wrong, but she figured she'd already pushed her luck far enough with the in-class texting for one day. Marinette had Alya if she really needed to talk with someone right away anyway.

Adrien glanced back at Marinette a few times, looking worried as well. Sarah observed this behavior with a slightly pleased smile. Then she realized...evil as it was, she could probably use this.

She made a mental note to text him after she talked with Marinette.

…

"I went to see the Guardian. That's why I was late to class," Marinette confessed to Sarah over video chat, after both parties had returned to the safety of their respective bedrooms.

"Ah," Sarah bit her lip, "...I take it you didn't like what he had to say about Chloe?"

"That obvious?" Marinette huffed, "Yup, he told me that he _intentionally_ gave the Miraculous to her, and he has every intention of allowing her to _continue_ holding it _despite_ what she just did...I can't _believe_ this!"

"Yikes," Sarah cringed, "So we're actually stuck with her?"

" _Yup_ ," Marinette popped angrily.

Floating nearby with a cookie, Tikki just smiled sheepishly.

"Well...at least my little threat convinced her to keep her identity a little more _secret_ , right?" Sarah asked, "And I'm pretty sure everyone out of the loop that heard her today thinks she was just vying for attention, so there's _that_ , right?'

"Yeah...could be worse..." Marinette conceded, then asked, "...how did I _not_ notice she was Honey Bee?"

"Hey, _I_ didn't see it coming either, and I _pride_ myself on catching these things," Sarah whined a little, "At least _you_ have the excuse of being busy balancing a dual life..."

"Yeah, but I actually _worked_ with her," Marinette pointed out, "You only saw what the media caught."

"Point..." Sarah sighed, "...can we just chalk it up to the idea being too horrifying for our brains to comprehend it sooner?"

"...yeah, let's go with that," Marinette smiled a little, her voice now lighter.

"Hey, you know those macarons you promised me? How about we host ourselves a little pity-party? A literal one. We could gorge ourselves on baked goods and watch silly videos till we can oh-so-briefly forget this madness," Sarah suggested.

"How about at _your_ place so you're not tempted to snoop," Marinette teased.

"Harsh! I totally know better by now!" Sarah feigned indignation, "Also, only if you promise not to steal any of my stuff. Again."

" _Confiscate_! I _confiscated_ your gear," Marinette emphasized, "I'll give it back... _eventually_..."

Tikki gave Marinette a knowing look.

"You mean when I'm _old_?" Sarah asked.

"Probably," Marinette admitted.

They all laughed.

…

As soon as she was done talking to Marinette, Sarah gleefully started texting Adrien.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I noticed you looked worried about Marinette earlier.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Yeah, do you know what's wrong?]

 **Sarah:** [She's sort of been brooding about the whole "don't tell LB" thing. (And between you and me, walking and brooding is a bad idea when there are people walking around with iced coffee. NEVER TELL A SOUL I MENTIONED THIS.) She'll keep her promise to stay quiet, it's just stressing her out a bit. :(]

* * *

Adrien immediately felt awful. Unlike the gum incident two years ago, this one was _totally_ his fault, right?

* * *

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Do you think there's anything I could do to make this up to her?]

* * *

Much as Sarah hated to make him feel guilty, his response was all she could have hoped for and more. And in her defense, he _could_ have come to this same conclusion on his own, so she was more-or-less helping along a natural process, right? And maybe it was completely evil of her to do this, BUT IT WAS IN THEIR BEST INTEREST, OKAY?!

...hopefully Karma would be chill with this.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Adrien, it's not your fault. She's doing this because I insisted. If anyone owes her it's me, because I agreed to this nonsense.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [But you wouldn't be doing this if I hadn't pushed you to, therefore it IS my fault Marinette is upset!]

 **Sarah:** [...let me guess. You're not going to stop worrying until you do something for her.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Sooooo does that mean you'll help me think of something...?]

 **Sarah:** [Well...are there any fashion shows or anything happening soon? She really loves that sort of thing, and she would probably be THRILLED if you invited her to go to one. You could even "happen" to have an extra ticket so she doesn't have to pay. AND you can use such an opportunity to talk to her and find out other ways to appease her until your guilt is eased.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [You're the best! I can totally do that! :D]

* * *

Erk...he was way too sweet and gullible, gosh dang it. She wasn't going to let it stop her, however, because he and Marinette had been circling each other hopelessly for TWO YEARS already, and the sooner they improved their relationship without the masks (and the sooner Hawkmoth was defeated), the better.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Just make ABSOLUTELY sure that Chloe doesn't find out, because I guarantee you she will try to crash the party. I recommend either inviting her over the phone, or during a "casual" visit to the bakery.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [I actually don't have her number, lol. Oh well, asking her in person sounds better to me anyway. :D]

 **Sarah:** [And you can totally ask her for her number while you're at it! :D]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Yup! :3]

 **Sarah:** [Well, I'll leave you to your plotting then. ;D Talk to you later!]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Later! :D]

* * *

Sarah then proceeded to pump her fists in a small victory dance. The meddlesome meddler had struck again!

…

"Sooooo, I _may_ have just convinced Adrien to invite Marinette to a friendly outing..." Sarah told Alya over video chat.

Alya's jaw dropped, "Are you for real?"

"And I didn't even have to use that favor he promised me," Sarah grinned excitedly, "He was _worried_ about her because she seemed stressed out, and I may have made some helpful suggestions...and now I fully expect that sometime in the near future Marinette will be screaming your ear off, so I'm giving you fair warning."

Alya squealed, bouncing in place, and Sarah giggled giddily.

…

Tuesday came and went without any more drama. Marinette came over in the evening, and the girls enjoyed their pity-party to the fullest. It resulted in belly-aches from too much junk food, aching abdominal muscles from laughing too hard at web videos, and tender scalps from trying new hairstyles they found pictures of on social media, but it was all completely worth it. Tikki was only nearly seen about three times by Sarah's aunt, and the girls had laughed hysterically afterwards.

It became an impromptu sleepover, and both girls overslept, but since it was Wednesday that was no problem at all. Plus making a late breakfast with two clumsy chefs in the kitchen turned out to be as fun as it was disastrous. And Marinette was nice enough to help her clean-up the mess afterwards.

…

Thursday was nice. It was much more like what one would have expected for the first week of school: _thankfully normal_.

Then Friday happened.

…

On her way to school Friday morning, Sarah paused at the sight of a small old man trying to descend a set of stairs. He was wobbling and moaning softly, as if the action was almost too much for him to handle.

She didn't want to be late, but no one else seemed to notice the poor man's struggle. So, after a moment's deliberation, she approached the man.

"Excuse me, Monsieur," she bit her lip, "Would you like a hand?"

The elder looked up at her, and smiled, "It is very kind of you to offer, Mademoiselle. Though perhaps a new set of knees would be better."

She couldn't help but smile at his joke, "Well, I'm afraid I can't help you there, Monsieur."

"Such a shame," he chuckled, accepting her support as she offered it.

Slowly, painfully slow, she steadied him as he made his way down the stairs. Internally she was screaming that she was going to be _so_ so very late, but she didn't try to rush him. Instead she kept smiling, and focused on making sure the man didn't stumble.

Finally, they reached the bottom of the stairs, and he smiled as he offered a formal bow to her, "Thank you, Mademoiselle. I hope you have a pleasant day."

"Ah...the same to you, Monsieur," she somewhat awkwardly mimicked the gesture, "Please take care."

She waved as she turned to leave, and he returned the gesture with a smile. While she then ran off like a madwoman in an attempt to compensate for lost time, she never saw the elder nod to himself, apparently pleased about something.

She never saw him climb right back up the stairs as if they were no trouble at all.

…

Returning home after a _spectacularly_ exhausting day, Sarah flopped down on her bed for a dramatic rest. Not only had she been late to class despite running herself ragged, she'd also found herself playing the distraction again so that _five_ classmates could sneak away to deal with yet _another_ Akuma.

How an _entire_ classroom could overlook the fact that _now_ when Akumas appeared _Twenty-five percent_ of the room liked to vanish, and that Sarah was rather predictably causing _some_ sort of disruption at the same time, was beyond her. She prayed that their obliviousness would not be put to the test too often after this.

Lunch break had given her a lovely breather, but her return to the school resulted in all the air being squashed from her lungs. It was amazing how such a small person could give such a bone-crushing hug, but somehow Marinette had managed. The girl had also managed to rattle Sarah's brains for all the shaking she did. The squealing had not helped either.

Apparently, an excited Marinette was a dangerous Marinette. Alya should have warned her.

Letting out a loud sigh, Sarah checked her phone, and began reading and replying to her messages. Only one was from Nino. She was so proud of him. A few were from Alya, conspiring on the finer points of the "not date" Adrien had _finally_ asked Marinette to go on.

Marinette had been a glomping terror after school, prompting Sarah and Alya to keep a safe distance while the bluenette had rambled, ranted, panicked, and squealed.

Adrien had taken Sarah's advice, and come up with something unexpected, and absolutely precious. Apparently it was Fashion Week in New York (which was apparently a big deal), and although time constraints would not allow Adrien to simply take Marinette in his family's private jet to New York (which might have given Marinette a heart-attack if he'd asked anyway), he came up with the next best thing.

Instead of inviting Marinette to go with him to a Fashion show, he invited her to come over _to his house_ to watch an exclusive live stream of the event. And for once, Marinette's presence in his bedroom would have nothing to do with an Akuma! (Hopefully she would remember that she "didn't know" where the bathroom was...)

Sufficient to say, there were _several_ messages from Marinette on Sarah's phone. She hadn't broken Nino's record, yet, but she had already _shattered_ her own and wasn't done yet. The girl needed to calm down and _breath_ for a minute.

Sarah felt a pang of sympathy for Tikki, but the Kwami was probably used to it.

When she was finally caught up with all her messages, she sat up and went to her computer. As she pulled her desk chair back, she finally noticed something a bit out of place sitting on her desk.

Gingerly, she picked the item up, looking it over. Mystified, she slowly began to open it.

…

Soon after opening the "pandora's box", she promptly dropped the contents as if they were a porcupine on fire.

Nope. Nope. Nopenopenopenopenopenopenope!

This was _not_ happening. She did _not_ sign up for this. JUST WHO DID THIS "GUARDIAN" GUY THINK HE WAS?!

…

Chapter End

* * *

Oh, you are going to LOVE the next chapter. ;P

So, apparently, I gave Sarah some REALLY cool parents. But it IS true that France has the better schools, so it IS reasonable that they would want the best education for her. (And I DO have a lot of respect for nuns, really, but some of them can be pretty intense sometimes, okay? At least, so I've heard…I don't think I've ever actually seen one in real life, to be perfectly honest. Outside of television, anyway.)

Despite their relationship in this story, I am secretly worried that Chloe might lose Sabrina's friendship to Lila or something next season, which makes Chloe re-evaluate herself as a person, yada, yada, yada...I will still cry if it happens. T_T

Yes, Honey Bee. Why? Because Bee in French is the same as Honey Bee, which is Abeille, three syllables. It transfers well, and sounds nice. I chose this name well before the "Queen B" name was released in that spoiler video, so I'm rolling with it.

And yes, I do believe Chloe is proud enough to pull such a stupid in class. And it IS possible for a Kwami to avoid transforming, as we've seen in canon. All Pollen had to do was phase through the floor, really. If you're wondering why Nooroo isn't resisting in this way...if he ever tried it at all, it probably only resulted in him being threatened (Hawkmoth could with-hold the Kwami's food-source until he needs him, for example...NOT OKAY...) and yelled at...and we all know Nooroo is weak under pressure, especially when he has no clue where to reach out and find someone who could rescue him...SAVE NOOROO, OMG, HURRY YOU GUYS! T^T

...I broke my 10,000 word limit again...


	7. Guardian Angels Don't Get Paid Enough

Chapter 7: Guardian Angels Don't Get Paid Enough

"MARINEEEETTE!" Sarah wailed into the phone, "WHAT DO I DOOOOO?!"

"Uh, S-Sarah?" Marinette was clearly surprised, "What's wrong?"

"HE WANTS ME TO _BABYSIT_ _**CHLOE**_!" Sarah wailed.

"...what?"

…

Sometime later, Sarah finally remembered how _not_ to hyperventilate. She shredded the letter (which she now _very_ _much_ _regretted_ opening), and then for good measure flushed the small mess down the toilet. She would have burned it, but, well, modern society rather frowned upon a girl setting fires in her bedroom. Such a pity.

The message had still been received, unfortunately. The Guardian had very _politely_ requested that she "watch over" Chloe "for a little while" until she "found her way".

When Marinette (with Tikki's assistance) had finally managed to decipher Sarah's panicked ramblings, and calmed Sarah down enough to listen, she confessed that she _had_ told the Guardian about Sarah, but she swore she had _no_ idea how the Guardian had figured out where Sarah lived. And Marinette promised Sarah that she was most certainly _not_ under _any_ obligation to undergo such a _horrid_ task, and that she would give the Guardian a firm word about this.

Sarah almost let herself be convinced. She really, _really_ wanted to be convinced not to get involved with Chloe. Wasn't it enough that she'd given Chloe one fair warning to behave? Why should Sarah have to endure the aggravating blond girl any more than that? It was the _Guardian_ who had picked her, for whatever crazy reason, so why should _Sarah_ have to deal with the consequences?

An innocent "ding" from Sarah's phone notified her that she had a message. So Sarah paused her mental rants to check it, and was pleasantly surprised to see it was from Adrien.

* * *

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [YOU ARE A LITERAL ANGEL FROM HEAVEN!]

 **Sarah:** [Lol, remind me again why that is?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Oh humble one, I'm talking about the thing with Chloe! I can't believe you're actually doing this, YOU ARE AMAZING!]

* * *

Sarah paused, and reread the message a few times. Her brow only furrowed deeper in confusion.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Wait, what are you talking about?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Pfft, don't try to play me! I'm talking about your decision to mentor Chloe! I just now heard about it! :D]

* * *

A terrible sense of dread began to pool heavily in her stomach. Why did he know about the secret message the Guardian had sent her? Why was he talking about it like she had actually _agreed_ to it?!

* * *

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [This is going to be just purrfect! I could think of no one better to help her stay on track! Have I mentioned YOU ARE AMAZING? :D

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [And I'll definitely do anything I can to help, you have my word! ^_^

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [But I just know you'll do a MIRACULOUS job! She's stubborn and proud, but she actually LISTENS to you!

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Sorry, too much? Are you regretting it already? I mean, I can't really blame you if that's the case, you DEFINITELY don't have any obligation to do this! It's totally okay if you need to back out!

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Sarah?]

* * *

Sarah was screaming into a pillow. Again.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Sorry! There was a...little intruder in my room...not sure what it was, but I guess it's gone now, lol! Probably just a mouse, but no, I do NOT need a helping paw to deal with it, I know how to set a mousetrap. :P]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Oh, lol! You had me worried there for a minute!]

 **Sarah:** [Sorry, lol! But, um, how did you hear about this again?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Has LB mentioned The Guardian to you yet?]

* * *

There it was. All remaining doubt flew out the window with a Plagg-like snicker.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Yes, actually. And I'm surprised he told you about it so fast! I seriously JUST finished talking to him!]

* * *

Stall for as long as possible, that was the only plan she had.

* * *

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Wow, you've actually talked to him already? In person?]

 **Sarah:** [...not exactly. I'm guessing it would be a big deal if I actually get to meet him?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Well, meeting him is one thing. Meeting him and KNOWING he's the Guardian is another thing entirely, lol!

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [I didn't know he was the Guardian until after being CN for quite a while!]

 **Sarah:** [Sooooooo I'm guessing that means you have an obligation not to share his identity with a nosy-nose like me?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Haha, sorry, but I have a feeling he might approach you himself someday!]

 **Sarah:** [I highly doubt he'd have reason to, but thanks for the vote of confidence! ;D]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Anyway...are you having any second thoughts? Cause I totally wouldn't blame you if you did!]

* * *

She knew he wouldn't blame her, wouldn't judge her for "changing her mind". However, it was clear he'd gotten his hopes up, and he was desperately clinging to anything that could help Chloe change for the better. Could she really stand to be the one to let him down?

* * *

 **Sarah:** [...this is a horrible, stupid plan, but...it has been said I am a meddlesome meddler, and so CLEARLY I had a very strict obligation to stick my nose in, lol.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Well I for one APURRECIATE your meddling! ;3]

 **Sarah:** [Oh, do you now? Okay, I'll meddle some more! As you may be aware, Marinette has a BIT of a clumsy streak, if there is any amount of walking while you guys are hanging out, could you maybe make sure she DOESN'T fall flat on her face?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Of course! I will do my best to protect her lovely face!]

* * *

Sarah took a moment to screen-cap, gleefully plotting ways she could use this to tease Marinette later.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [You truly are a knight in shining armor! ;D]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Lol, that I am! ;3]

 **Sarah:** [Also, don't be afraid to insist she take your arm or something, because I promise you she WILL try to refuse it, but deep down she'll REALLY appreciate the fact that you're looking out for her wellbeing. She's just a LITTLE stubborn about being self sufficient, but she's such a daydreamer she's always tripping over stuff and...yeah, PLEASE insist, lol!]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Alright, I will do my best! :)]

* * *

Another screen-cap was absolutely necessary. Alya was going to _loooooove_ thiiiiiis~!

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Sweet! My meddling quota for the day is now complete! :D]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Happy to be of assistance! ^_^]

 **Sarah:** [Ah, I better go set that mouse trap now, lol, talk to you later!]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Later! :D]

* * *

She then proceeded to scream into her pillows for a good duration of time before sending Marinette a text.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [This totally counts as blackmail.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Wait, what?]

 **Sarah:** [Your "Guardian" set me up, and now I can't say no! T^T]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Wait, what do you MEAN he set you up? Explain.]

 **Sarah:** [Let's just say a dangerously adorable puppy has expectations, and if I back out now I'll feel like I kicked the poor thing.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.]

 **Sarah:** [Unfortunately I cannot explain it better than that without making a mess of things. The point is, either intentionally or on accident (call me crazy, but I'm totally betting intentional), the Guardian has me at checkmate. *cringing emoticon*]

 **Macaron Angel:** [You can't be serious.]

 **Sarah:** [I WISH I wasn't serious!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [...want to have another pity-party?]

 **Sarah:** [Yes please?

 **Sarah:** [Though it can wait until AFTER your DAAAAATE tomorroooow~ ;D]

 **Macaron Angel:** [You know it's not a date! XP]

 **Sarah:** [And can we invite Alya? She'll want to badger you for details too, I'm sure, and it would be AMAZING to focus on something other than...nope, not thinking about it, I'll deal with it later. MUCH later, lol.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Fine, I suppose I can be your temporary scape-goat. :P]

 **Sarah:** [You're miraculous~! ;D]

 **Macaron Angel:** [That is Chat's thing, desist immediately.]

 **Sarah:** [And you know he apurroves~! ;D]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Remind me to punch him for corrupting you, and to punch YOU for being corrupted.]

 **Sarah:** [Nah, I think it's in my best interest to forget. ;P]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Forgetful children don't get cookies.]

 **Sarah:** [I remember that you are talented, beautiful, kind, and amazing?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [...fine, you get SOME cookies.]

 **Sarah:** [^-^]

 **Macaron Angel:** [...you know, I know you don't want to think about this yet...but there's NO WAY Chloe is just going to stand by and let you "babysit" her...]

 **Sarah:** [UGH]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Look, I KNOW you. You're definitely going to start meddling, and though she might be oblivious to a LOT of things, she will DEFINITELY notice you poking around and you KNOW she won't like that...]

 **Sarah:** [UGH]

 **Macaron Angel:** [This is a terrible idea, are you SURE you can't change your mind about this?]

 **Sarah:** [I am currently bashing my forehead against my desktop in an attempt to forget why I agreed to this.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Don't make me come over there, lol.]

 **Sarah:** [Meddler. ;P]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Haha, you got me. XP]

* * *

Unseen by Sarah, Marinette stuck her tongue out at her giggling Kwami.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [UGH...I've already used the "tattle" card once, and she'll probably explode if I overuse it...that won't end well. *cringing emoticon*]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Think there's anything I can do to help?]

 **Sarah:** [What, like have Ladybug show up and tell her to let me meddle? Funny as that would be, she'd totally figure out I told you, and...yeah, that MIGHT be a problem, lol.]

* * *

There was no reply. Marinette had her think-face on.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Marinette?

 **Sarah:** [You still there?]

* * *

Frowning, Sarah waited. She was not going to pull a Nino. She could wait. Oh God, what if there was an Akuma?! No, wait, Marinette still would have said something, right? UNLESS IT ATTACKED HER HOUSE, OH GOD!

She blamed Nino, it was totally his fault she was obscenely paranoid. Well, actually she was already paranoid, but it felt nice to have someone to blame, even if it was only momentarily, because even she couldn't delude herself that long.

Maybe she could text Adrien and have him check it out. And if she was wrong? A little more "Chat" time for him and Marinette couldn't hurt, right?

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Hey, maybe I'm just being paranoid, but Marinette suddenly stopped texting me, and okay maybe this is REALLY paranoid of me, but do you think you have a spare moment to run by and make sure there isn't a crazy Akuma involved in her obnoxiously long pause?

 **Sarah:** [Also, don't you DARE tell a soul I did this, because if I'm wrong I'm going to be superiorly embarrassed I got riled up over nothing! *cringing emoticon*]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Yeah, I can check! :3]

 **Sarah:** [THANK YOU!]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Anything for a friend! ;3]

* * *

Okay, everything would be okay now. She could stop worrying. If there was an Akuma, Chat would be there, and he could call for back-up if they needed it. Everything would be fine.

God she was paranoid. Maybe it wasn't Nino's fault she was this way, but it kind of _was_ his fault she was starting to notice it more. Oh sweet ignorant bliss, why did you fly off with the Peacock?

Calmer now, Sarah decided she needed a snack break. Preferably with something sweet, fattening, and absolutely not healthy. Her Aunt wasn't going to be pleased with the mess she made in the kitchen, but Sarah could clean it up later.

Her hands and face were sticky with the sugary goodness (only half of which survived long enough to make it into the oven), when her phone finally dinged.

* * *

 **Macaron Angel:** [Oops, sorry for leaving like that! I was thinking, and then Chat Noir suddenly dropped by and I forgot!]

 **Sarah:** [Whoa, CHAT NOIR did? What did he want?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [He said he was just passing by, not sure WHY...but in any case he made this obnoxiously forlorn face when he smelled Tikki's cookies, so I fed him...and now I have a feeling I might have made a huge mistake. *cringing emoticon*]

* * *

Sarah punched the air, not noticing the little bits of flour and dough flinging through the air. Her Aunt was not going to be pleased, nope.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Aww! That was so sweet of you! ;3]

 **Macaron Angel:** [ARG! Now you sound just like HIM! STOP THAT!]

 **Sarah:** [Tee hee! ;P]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Anyway, I think I have a plan...]

 **Sarah:** [Plan?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Yeah, for dealing with Chloe.]

 **Sarah:** [UGH I just managed to forget about it!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Lol, just hear me out, okay?]

 **Sarah:** [Okay...I'm all ears!]

* * *

Marinette Dupain-Cheng had a plan that was terrifyingly brilliant. It was so crazy...that it just might work.

…

Sarah had considered mentioning the Guardian's involvement to Alya and Nino, but decided that could potentially be too troublesome to try and explain. Instead, she opted to just out herself as the insane person she apparently was, and let them judge her for it. So, after Marinette ran off to initiate the first phase of their horrible plot, Sarah went about notifying people of her intentions.

Alya would be first.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I have somehow convinced myself to do something incredibly stupid, and nothing will deter me. I've had a little chat with Ladybug, and she thinks I'm crazy too, but she's agreed to help me out by speaking to the Mayor on my behalf so Chloe can't have me arrested or something...]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [...okay, girl, I'm going to need more details than that. A LOT more.]

 **Sarah:** [...seeing as "Chloe" is a well known Akuma target, and I'm worried about her screwing up and exposing herself as Bee which will land ME in hot water too now if she does, I've decided to elect myself as an official "Akuma deterrent" for the sake of "protecting Chloe from Akumas" and "reducing the number of Akumas" by "preventing her from causing them"...so, yep, I'm volunteering myself to follow CHLOE around like some sort of weird bodyguard so I can make sure she doesn't screw up. *cringing emoticon*]

* * *

After a lengthy wait, instead of text her back, Alya sent her a video-call request. Bracing herself, Sarah accepted it.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!" Alya demanded.

"Yup," Sarah agreed seriously.

"OH MY GOD! Girl, no, you're just going to tick her off more, and you'll burn out in, like, two days!" Alya ranted, "If things go South, you know Ladybug would understand why you kept your mouth shut, and Adrien will understand that it wasn't your fault that Chloe's an idiot, SO DON'T DO IT!"

"That is a very convincing argument. I have a feeling a similar one was echoing around my bedroom just a short while ago when I was screaming at myself for coming up with this idea," Sarah nodded sagely.

Alya face-palmed, "...Sarah, this is a _terrible_ idea."

"Trust me, I am aware," Sarah sighed, "But...apparently I've gotten the idea stuck in my head now, and I'm going to meddle whether I like it or not..."

Alya face-palmed with both hands.

Sarah sighed again, "So...yup, thought I'd warn you before I'm suddenly announcing it to the class...if the Mayor agrees to it, of course, which Ladybug _assured_ me she could pull off..."

"Well, yeah, he definitely likes to do anything she asks..." Alya shook her head, "And I doubt Chloe can really stand a chance against a request from her either...but _seriously,_ Sarah? You're going to _announce_ your insanity?"

"It's either that, or let them wonder on their own why the heck I'm following Chloe around," Sarah pointed out.

Alya grimaced, "Okay, yeah, that would be weird without an explanation..."

"I told Marinette already, and she promised me a "pity-party" on Sunday, after her "not date" with Adrien," Sarah brightened as she said it, "I asked her to invite you too. Think you can come?"

Alya grinned, "Skip the chance to get the deets on that "not date"? Not if I can help it! I'll check to make sure my parents' don't need me to baby-sit."

"Fingers crossed," Sarah offered.

"Speaking of crossed fingers, Ladybug _warned_ me about that little trick of yours," Alya grinned.

"Usually I don't have to use it, since I tend to be _painfully_ honest," Sarah smirked.

"So you actually _did_ lecture Adrien on how badly he was "courting" Chloe?" Alya teased.

"Ah...oh _yeah_. I almost forgot I pulled that one!" Sarah giggled, "And it was _true_! He was doing a _terrible_ job!"

"Thank the Good Lord for that. But what was that _really_ about?"

"Sorry, not telling."

"Aww, why not?" Alya pouted.

"For reasons, my overly curious friend, that are no concern of yours," Sarah explained in amusement, "I have to ask though, how long have you been wondering about that? That was _months_ ago!"

Alya shrugged, "Can't help it. Chloe's reaction was priceless."

"Did you get a picture?" Sarah asked.

"Unfortunately not," Alya laughed.

"Rats," Sarah laughed, "Well, I better-oh! Speaking of pictures...I have something good~!"

"What?" Alya was immediately intrigued.

"Okay, so I was sort of texting Adrien earlier, and...well, hold on, I'll send you the screen-caps!"

She carefully cropped the images, then screen-capped them and cropped them again so she could delete the first set. Silly iPhotos never did alter the original images, after all. Better safe than sorry.

Finally done, she sent them.

* * *

 _more! As you may be aware, Marinette has a BIT of a clumsy streak, if there is any amount of walking while you guys are hanging out, could you maybe make sure she DOESN'T fall flat on her face?]_

 _[Of course! I will do my best to protect her lovely face!]_

* * *

And...

* * *

 _[Also, don't be afraid to insist she take your arm or something, because I promise you she WILL try to refuse it, but deep down she'll REALLY appreciate the fact that you're looking out for her wellbeing. She's just a LITTLE stubborn about being self sufficient, but she's such a daydreamer she's always tripping over stuff and...yeah, PLEASE insist, lol!]_

 _[Alright, I will do my best! :)]_

* * *

Alya squealed, "OH MY GOD! Have you shown these to Marinette yet?!"

"Nope, I'm thinking of sending them to her at the last minute, since I'd rather avoid going _deaf_ for as long as possible," Sarah giggled, "What do you think?"

Alya laughed.

…

Not long after ending her conversation with Alya, Sarah got an update from Marinette via text. Her request to the Mayor had been _easily_ approved, and Ladybug had been honored with a _hilariously_ flabbergasted reaction from Chloe.

As Ladybug had taken the task of informing Sarah on the terms of her new job, Marinette carefully went over all the details with her. Several new contacts found their way on Sarah's phone, including people she could more-or-less consider "coworkers" now, and Ladybug had kindly given Sarah's contact info to the Bourgeois Family Butler.

The job itself was pretty straight forward. Starting Monday, she was supposed to more-or-less shadow Chloe whenever the girl left the hotel, as long as circumstances allowed her to anyway. Sarah was only a teenager after all, and it wasn't like they were _paying_ her to do this. They apparently _couldn't_ employ her without breaking Child Labor Laws, so this was _technically_ Volunteer work, and so she would _not_ get paid. She was being offered free lunches at the Hotel, but that was pretty much the _only_ good thing out of the whole deal (outside of being allowed access to their pool, but she was pretty sure she wouldn't get to use it much).

Sarah let out a long whine when she found out she was going to be riding to and from school with Chloe, starting _immediately_ the following Monday. _Why_ had she ever complained about going to school on foot? _How_ could she have been so unappreciative of such a _privilege_? Past Sarah should have been ashamed of herself!

Once she was done receiving the horrible news from Marinette, Sarah sent a text to Alya, letting her know Ladybug had delivered as promised.

* * *

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Congratulations, you poor insane idiot.]

 **Sarah:** [Can I pretend that statement comes with a comforting hug, because I think I need one. :(]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [That statement DEFINITELY came with a hug, girly.]

 **Sarah:** [^_^ You're the best!]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Yes I am, because I will hug you even if you get yourself turned into a sobbing, snotty mess because you were dumb enough to do this.]

 **Sarah:** [Aww! Yup, you're truly miraculous~]

 **World's Best Blogger:** [Lol]

* * *

Since it was getting late they wrapped the conversation up quickly, leaving Sarah plenty of time to let Adrien know about the new development. As for Nino...nope, she would deal with Adrien first, and worry about that later.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Okay, so I did some crazy brainstorming with Marinette, talked to Ladybug, and SOMEHOW convinced her to convince the Mayor to let me follow Chloe around...under the pretense of protecting her from Akuma.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [Wait, you're doing WHAT?]

 **Sarah:** [Chloe is a common target. So I'm "volunteering" to "prevent" her from causing Akuma, and to "hide" her if an Akuma appears.]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THAT?! THAT IS BRILLIANT!]

 **Sarah:** [Marinette deserves all the credit. And SPEAKING of Marinette...I heard she may or may not have treated you to cookies?]

 **Dangerous Puppy Eyes:** [She did! She's such an amazing sweetheart! *heart emoticon*]

* * *

Sarah squealed excitedly, then quietly mourned the fact she couldn't share this text with anyone. Stupid secret identities. Stupid Hawkmoth.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I couldn't have said it better myself, lol!]

* * *

Soon enough they were done chatting. Then Sarah hurriedly cleaned up the kitchen under her aunt's stern frown and helped with dinner.

Dinner ended all too soon. Her daily video-call with her parents came and went. And there was only so much time she could spend on homework before it became embarrassing, so, finally, Sarah steeled herself. There was no more reason to procrastinate. Knowing she _had_ to get it over with...Sarah opened Nino's contact...

Aaaaand then closed it again, and instead waited until very late Sunday evening to bite the bullet. Saturday was the all important "not-date", after all. Why would anyone want to taint such a wondrous occasion with any sort of negative thoughts? And then Sunday was her all-to-important pity-party, where she would learn all the details of the adorable, clumsily blooming romance between Marinette and Adrien (though Tikki was unfortunately unavailable for comment due to Alya's presence)...so, yes, Sarah ended up procrastinating for as long as possible.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Hey~, I have something to tell you~]

 **Night Owl:** [what?]

* * *

All vain hope of him _somehow_ already being asleep and reading her confession in the morning was cruelly squashed right then and there. Oh well.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [You're going to freak. And panic, and probably call me to shriek in my ear because I'm completely insane for doing this.]

* * *

Instead, he video-called right then. Sarah groaned before answering.

"Spill, now," Nino gave her a look.

"...this would be a _little_ easier over text..." she laughed nervously.

"Uh-uh, now," he pointed down for emphasis.

"Wow, _now_ who's the momma bird?" she attempted sass, but it came out a bit weak.

"Ha. Ha. Out with it," he didn't back down.

Back to the full-out cringing-child look, Sarah took a breath, "...well...I had this really terrible idea...and now, thanks to a certain powerful someone speaking to another certain powerful someone on my behalf...I'm now a recognized, official, Akuma deterrent. AKA, Chloe's babysitter."

Furrowed brow faded into a blank look, and she waited.

"...Akuma deterrent?"

"Basically, I keep Chloe from causing Akumas, and supposedly "hide" her when one comes after her," Sarah told him, "Ladybug thought it was crazy too, but you guys really could use a break from the Akumas she causes, so...yeah, she spoke to the Mayor for me."

"...you're crazy. You are _actually_ insane," he gaped at her.

"Well, yeah," Sarah agreed.

"THIS IS A TERRIBLE IDEA!"

"I know, I know..." Sarah cringed.

If the boy had hair long enough, he would have been pulling it out. It was the beginning of a very long lecture, that Sarah endured for the next hour. He was very much not chill with this idea, despite her compelling argument, and was _so_ much harder to distract with trivia than Alya.

This was _exactly_ why she had procrastinated.

…

Sarah's Aunt was very much confused when a man in a suit appeared at their door Monday morning, asking if Sarah was at home.

Sarah had not told her Aunt anything about her "new job", and, due to _not_ going to bed at a decent time, had overslept and thus missed the text that would have notified her that the driver had arrived.

Sarah got ready for school in record time, but the entire complex still heard Chloe screeching from outside. It wore Sarah's excuse (that her "very rich classmate" just wanted to be "nice" and give her a ride to school) a wee bit thin. Her Aunt didn't appear particularly convinced, but let it go so Sarah wouldn't be late.

Sarah loved her Aunt, she was amazing and put up with all her teenage nonsense, but Sarah knew that explaining the real reasons why a Chauffeur was at her doorstep would be a _horrible_ idea.

Chloe ragged on her the entire ride to school for her lack of professionalism, and anything else she could think of just to be mean, like harshly critiquing Sarah's appearance. It was all endured with a polite smile, and by mercy of the Heavens the ride was a short one.

Sarah still had to walk Chloe to class though, and endure a lot of odd looks the whole way. Sabrina, evidently briefed on the situation prior, had glared at her and _almost_ accidentally shut the limo door in Sarah's face after letting Chloe out. Sarah had avoided it by quickly telling Sabrina her hair looked nice with a convincing smile. The redhead had been quite flattered, but, after receiving a look from Chloe, Sabrina continued to glare at Sarah the rest of the way to their class.

With a heavy sigh, Sarah had approached their teacher, and requested permission to make an announcement to the class before the lesson started.

Madam Bustier was surprised by the request, but after being assured it was _important_ she reluctantly allowed it. Thus, right after the bell rang, the teacher gave a quick call of attention, and stood back to let Sarah speak.

Sarah then took a deep breath, and faced the class with a sullen look, "As I'm sure most of you are aware, there is a tendency for Chloe to be the focus of an Akuma attack."

Chloe shot her a glare, but rather than comment proceeded to huff and look elsewhere.

"In light of this," Sarah continued her practiced speech, "Mayor Andre Bourgeois, on behalf of Ladybug's request, has authorized me to act as a volunteer Akuma deterrent in Chloe Bourgeois's life. Therefore, I would like to request that if she ever has a _disagreement_ with someone while I'm not watching, that you might inform me immediately so that I can take preventive measures. That is all. Thank you."

Slack jaws watched as she walked up to her seat. Chloe was seething, but she chose not to speak. Sabrina noted this, and thus kept her mouth shut too.

"Are you for real?" Alix said it.

"I wish I wasn't," Sarah dead-panned, "But apparently _someone_ decided a Ladybug-failure like me could still do something useful, and... _apparently_ I'm crazy enough to go along with it. Unless someone else would like to take my place...?"

Suddenly people were dutifully facing forward in their seats. Such a prompt reaction.

"Are you being paid?" Kim dared to ask.

"Nope, though I _was_ promised free lunches," Sarah told him, "And possibly free rides, unless Chloe bribes the Chauffeur and makes me follow on foot."

"Girl, don't give her any ideas," Alya warned.

Sarah shrugged, "She can't actually ditch me without making Ladybug mad, and I don't think Chloe has the patience for how slow I run."

Marinette giggled at the image, though she tried to hide it behind her hand.

"Okay..." Alya said uncertainly, fighting back a smirk.

Mademoiselle Bustier finally called the class back to order after that, recovering from her own surprise at the announcement. Everyone soon had more important things to worry about than Sarah's problems, including Sarah as she tried to keep up with the lecture.

Chloe, however, was definitely _not_ paying attention to the lecture, and was instead plotting ways to make Sarah suffer after class.

…

It became immediately clear that Chloe hoped to send Sarah home crying, and force the girl to quit of her own volition.

Nino had been right to worry about kidnappings. Sarah would never judge his paranoia again. And it was now clear to Sarah that when Chloe was determined, she didn't _always_ care if people saw her drag someone around against their will.

Sufficient to say, Sarah did not enjoy her lunch break, nor did she enjoy her time after school. She had never treasured class time as much as she did that day. Chloe dragged her around like a rag-doll, and simply did everything she could to ensure that Sarah had an absolutely terrible time.

When Sarah finally returned home that evening, the first thing she told her startled Aunt was, in a voice heavy with disdain, "I _hate_ rich girls."

That might have been why Therese hesitated to ask about her niece's rather hideous make-over.

…

 _Somehow_ Sarah eventually convinced her Aunt that she _wasn't_ being bullied...her friend was just a rich idiot with no fashion sense. She claimed she had suddenly decided to hang out with Chloe _constantly_ because the girl was actually pretty nice once you got to know her (perhaps the biggest whopper she'd ever told in her life), and because she _might_ have gotten involved in a huge intervention to encourage a stupidly in love couple to get over their stupid insecurities and just admit their suffocatingly adorable feelings for each other, and that her keeping the rich girl distracted was quite possibly the only way it could be accomplished.

Therese believed the last part, if nothing else, and simply lectured Sarah for as briefly as possible before she let the poor exhausted girl go to bed.

Sarah sent one text to four heroes separately.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Sleeping now, do not disturb until morning.]

* * *

To Marinette, she also sent:

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Please let Rose and Juleka know I'm fine, just...yeah. Sleeping now.]

* * *

And to Adrien, she sent:

* * *

 **Sarah:** [I finished exactly NO homework today...if you would be so kind as to share your answers on the homework due tomorrow, I will count it as a favor off your debt. Goodnight.]

* * *

And then, after cleaning all the hideous mess off, and sending a bare-minimum "goodnight, I love you" text to her parents, Sarah crashed, and did not move until morning, when she threw her alarm clock across the room with a rather satisfying crash. (Of course, she had to apologize to her aunt later, but, in her defense, she _was_ half asleep.)

…

On the ride to school Tuesday, Chloe tried to black-mail Sarah with photos of the "masterpiece" that could only be described as an _outrageous insult_ to beauty and fashion. Sarah refused to give her the satisfaction, and _dared_ her to go through with her threats to share it with the whole school. Which, Chloe did. Promptly.

Sarah saw the looks of amusement and pity, and heard the whispers and the giggles, all the way to her classroom. When familiar faces whipped around to look at her, she tactfully ignored them, and walked up to her seat as if nothing was wrong.

Most of the room was hesitant to mention the pictures they had all received. When she looked up from setting her supplies out on the desk, she noticed Kim was smirking at her.

He held up his phone, showing one of the pictures to her, "Nice hair, Sarah."

A few people may have gasped.

As much as the situation _royally_ sucked, however, Sarah was going to have fun with it.

"Oh, you like it _that_ much?" Sarah feigned surprise, then called across the room, "Hey, _Chloe_! I think _Kim_ wants to _take my place_ as your-"

"I'm sorry! I was just kidding!" Kim interrupted hastily, almost dropping his phone in his panic.

" _Darn_ , so close," Sarah snapped her fingers as she mock pouted, before giving up and giggling into her hand.

Kim elbowed Max for smirking at him, knowing he'd been played.

"Good luck with your bet, Max," Sarah threw out, unable to fully hide her amusement.

The boys both jolted in their seat, and had the decency to look embarrassed.

"Just make it past the one-week mark, and Kim will cry like a baby," Alix grinned at her, "Make it past a month, and _Max_ will weep."

Sarah grinned back, "As long as Chloe doesn't miraculously change for the better, and as long as Ladybug continues to insist she needs my intervention, I don't think you have to worry, Alix."

"Prepare yourselves," Alix smirked at the boys.

Max pushed his glasses higher up on his nose while Kim crossed his arms and hmphed, "So she can talk the talk, let's see her walk the walk."

"I'm walking, I'm walking," Sarah snickered.

She shot her confidant smile over to Rose and Juleka, who relaxed visibly at the sight.

"You're very brave," Juleka said softly, and Rose nodded enthusiastically.

Sarah blushed a little, chuckling, "Yeah, well...it helps to know I have such great friends backing me up..."

The two girls smiled warmly at her, and though Sarah hadn't truly been worried this would change anything...deep down she was relieved. Even if they didn't know half of what was going on, Sarah was truly grateful to have their friendship and support...more than she could ever say.

…

Chloe was temporarily stumped when public humiliation failed her. All too soon, however, she found a _new_ way to threaten Sarah...and so, after school that day, she did. The moment they were alone in Chloe's hotel room (for reasons Sarah no longer bothered to question), the blond went in for the kill.

"You know, there's a rumor going around that your family doesn't even _know_ how heroic you are, isn't that an absolute shame?" Chloe's concern was obviously fake, "I'm sure they would just _love_ to know!"

Sarah stared at the conniving heiress in shock, but as the full meaning of the threat hit her, she clenched her teeth and fists, shaking with powerful emotion, "...I...will put up with _anything...except_ for that, Chloe."

Chloe, believing she'd won, began to grin.

"If you, or _anyone_ under your influence pushes for my family to believe they need to drag me away from Paris, and ground me _forever_ , I'm not going to _protect_ you from Ladybug anymore," Sarah swore, growing fury in her eyes.

Chloe's grin faltered.

"I'm only doing all of this because people _asked_ me to. You can make my life here miserable all you want, but I am _not_ going to let you use my _family_ against me," Sarah snarled, "Don't _ever_ threaten me with that again, do you understand me?"

Chloe wavered for a moment, then tossed her hair as if completely unfazed, "You're obviously bluffing."

"Bluffing? Don't delude yourself, _Sweet-Bee_ ," Sarah's cold glare sent a small shiver down the other girl's spine, "If you take me down, I will _not_ go down alone. If I'm cut off from Paris because my family is questioning my _sanity_ , I'll never have the _chance_ to hear from my friends again, much less the few people here who are trusting me to keep you _out_ of the muck you're _constantly_ trying to throw yourself in. Why should I _care_ what they think of me if I drag you through the mud at that point? If I'm never going to have to face their disappointment, why _shouldn't_ I let you face the music you're just _dying_ to hear?

"So, if you _really_ want to see just how quickly I can make _your_ life miserable, go right ahead and push me to it. If you're _really_ that _stupid_ , go on and get it over with."

Chloe might have gulped.

"Are you two finished?" Pollen spoke up.

Sarah jolted, somehow having forgotten the Kwami was there, and looked away with a mortified flush.

"If you're done harassing your human shield, then let's get to work, Chloe," the Kwami said, flying into the middle of the room.

"Uh, are you going on a patrol or something?" Sarah asked, surprised, and quietly relieved that the tiny being wasn't calling her out for what she'd just witnessed.

"Chloe isn't finished setting up for your sleepover tonight," Pollen replied.

"She is _not_ sleeping over," Chloe argued.

"Why _would_ I sleep over?" Sarah wanted to know.

"I've already texted your Aunt. She wishes to know if you need to collect any of your belongings or not," Pollen said.

"Wha-you _what_?!" Sarah dug out her phone, opened the correct app...and blanched.

How the heck did Pollen know her passcode?! _AND_ HER TEXTING MANNERISMS?!

"Your father has been informed already, and Sabrina will arrive shortly," Pollen continued.

Chloe quickly checked her phone, and growled, "What did I tell you about messing with my phone?!"

"Stop complaining and get to work. Sabrina is _not_ your worker, and she is _not_ responsible for the condition of _your_ hive," Pollen asserted.

Sarah just gaped at the proceedings.

"This is stupid!" Chloe exclaimed.

"What is stupid is wasting time, now MOVE IT!" Pollen flew around Chloe, zooming at her from the back.

Chloe yelped out, hands flying back to her behind as she involuntarily hopped forward.

It was pretty obvious what had happened. Apparently that stinger wasn't _just_ for looking sharp; the Kwami could actually _use_ it.

"OKAY, OKAY!" Chloe cried, "I'LL TAKE CARE OF IT!"

The girl then called the front desk, and ordered for extra bedding to be brought to her room, which was promptly delivered, and left as directed. Chloe then, quite clumsily, tossed blankets and pillows on the two pink couches of her room.

"Straighten the corners! There shouldn't be wrinkles!"

"Ugh, FINE!"

"It should be _folded_ right there, fix it!"

"THERE, happy?!"

"The pillows are out of alignment."

Chloe growled, but fixed it.

"...I suppose that should do," Pollen nodded.

Now, Sarah hadn't known Chloe _nearly_ as long as the rest of their classmates had...but she was pretty _d*mn_ sure that the laws of probability were being heavily strained here, and she had an instinctual urge to _run_ and _keep_ running until she was safely away from this strange phenomenon.

"Have you responded to your Aunt, Mademoiselle McCoy?"

Sarah gulped, "Uh, sorry, I was thinking...my Aunt wouldn't know where all of my things are, so...I should probably head over right quick to get my things..."

"...Chloe, aren't you going to call the Chauffeur for her?"

Sarah released a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

"Why should I?"

"Because she is your _guest_."

"Arg!"

…

Sarah was definitely tempted to do _something_ to avoid returning to the hotel...but somehow that didn't seem optional, so instead she just gathered the essentials, faked a goofy smile for her Aunt, and returned to the waiting limo.

On the ride back to the hotel, Sarah called Marinette.

"Sarah? Is everything okay?"

"...Chloe made beds!" Sarah blurted.

"...what?"

"Chloe...she MADE BEDS," Sarah emphasized, struggling to put her panic into words, "And Pollen hijacked my phone! And it's a sleepover!"

"S-Sarah, calm down...I'm having trouble understanding..."

"I'M SLEEPING OVER AT CHLOE'S!"

There was silence in reply.

"It's Pollen! She's making us do it! SHE MADE CHLOE MAKE BEDS!" Sarah waited, but at the continued silence went on, "Please say something, I'm freaking out over here!"

"It will be okay!" Tikki's voice chimed in, "Pollen can be a little extreme, but she knows what she's doing."

"She stung Chloe! On the butt!"

"A-are you _serious_?" Marinette gasped.

"And she hijacked our phones to contact people! AND IT WAS VERY CONVINCING!"

"What? Why?"

"She texted my aunt and the mayor to ask permission for the sleepover, and she texted Sabrina to invite her to join us! And if I wasn't so _shocked_ I would be _very impressed_!"

The limo stopped, but not in front of the hotel.

"Uh..." Sarah was confused for a moment.

"Sarah?"

Then she saw Sabrina running toward the door, carrying a rather large briefcase with surprisingly little trouble.

"Sorry, I gotta go! Sabrina's here!" Sarah said quickly.

"Uh, wait! Are you going to be okay?!"

"I-"

"Hi Sarah!" Sabrina burst into the car with a brilliant smile, her large bag making the car shake a little as she set it down, "Isn't this exciting?! Chloe almost _never_ has sleepovers! This is going to be so much fun!"

"...it will be an experience, for sure!" Sarah forced a laugh, then spoke to her phone, "Sorry, I'll have to call you later, Aunt Therese! Yes, I'll text you before I go to bed, I promise."

Marinette sighed, "Good luck, Sarah..."

"Thank you, and don't worry, Aunt Therese, bye-bye!" Sarah said with false cheer, then after hanging up turned to Sabrina, "Wow, what all did you bring?!"

Sabrina excitedly described the number of things she had brought, and how they could be used, all the way to Chloe's room. Sarah smiled and nodded at the cute, fun sleepover-related items...and wondered with growing dread why the h*ll Pollen had told Sabrina to bring so much exercise equipment.

…

It all happened so quickly after that. The moment their belongings were set down in Chloe's room, Chloe was distributing matching uniforms...

Matching. Freaking. Uniforms. _Sports_ uniforms. _Including_ shoes, a sports bra, wrist bands, a head band, and even a water bottle?!

Sadly, she knew exactly when they had obtained her sizes...stupid shopping trip...but Sarah was still horrified, and horribly confused. And before she could even ask, she was being rushed to change into the uniform, and then was being rushed out of the hotel, and into the waiting limo.

"Ooooh! I can't _believe_ we wasted an entire, _usable_ day on those ridiculous and pointless antics yesterday!" the Kwami ranted once the car was moving, zipping around the inside of the car in agitation.

"You're already demanding that I do my own homework! This is inhumane!" Chloe complained.

Pollen buzzed in irritation, "So help me, I will _sting_ that attitude out of you."

How could such a tiny, _adorable_ little fuzz-ball be so freakishly _terrifying_?! What had Plagg said again? He'd mentioned Pollen, hadn't he? Something about as much "bite" as her bark...and was Sarah remembering correctly about him saying something along the lines of "a shouty slave-driver"? _Tikki_ had even said Pollen could be "a little" extreme, hadn't she?

Sarah had thought the shopping trip from H*ll had been bad, but now...Chloe's attempts at torture seemed about as dreadful as a grumpy kitten, while Pollen's fury seemed to be sailing right into p*ssed-off tiger territory.

Sarah had never been closer to aborting her mission. Terrifying Kwami had _not_ been in the job description!

Again, before she could find the courage to raise her voice in the presence of someone so strangely frightening, Sarah found herself being ushered to the next location: an empty gymnasium. And once they were in the clear...Pollen began barking orders.

"Alright, warm up! Jog five laps, then head to the middle circle! Move it!"

Chloe huffed, but one look from the Kwami and she and Sabrina got moving.

Then Pollen looked at Sarah.

"U-uh...I-I'm not entirely sure I understand what's going on...?" Sarah squeaked, visibly crumpling under the stern gaze with her shoulders already up to her ears.

"You will be joining our training from this point forward."

It wasn't _quite_ an order...but somehow, it wasn't optional either.

"B-but...why?" Sarah asked, "What do I need training for?"

"You're wasting time with these questions," Pollen's tone sharpened, "By agreeing to help my chosen you have become a part of our hive, and you _will_ be trained, so GET MOVING!"

Pollen loomed over Sarah, absolute authority practically radiating off her tiny body, and somehow managing to make her appear much, _much_ larger than she really was.

"... _I didn't sign up for this_!" Sarah wailed as she broke under the pressure and started jogging as instructed.

"Less lip, more legs! You're already behind!"

What in Karma's name had Sarah done to deserve _this_?!

…

Pollen claimed their workout regime for the day would be _lighter_ for Sarah, since she had only just begun. Sure, Sarah was pushed through only half as much as Chloe and Sabrina...but...clearly "light" meant something completely different in the Bee Kwami's book. If there was even a fiber of muscle left that hadn't been exerted to the point of exhaustion, Sarah wasn't too sure _where_ it could be hiding.

When they all retired to Chloe's room, Sarah could barely muster up enough energy to pull out her phone to text Marinette as well as her parents. She honestly wanted to cry after the long day of torment, but making her friend worry was the last thing she wanted to do. So, she told Marinette she was "fine" and that she would tell her everything later.

…

Wednesday was another long day of torment, and on the ride home that evening Sarah praised all things good that it was a school night, and that Pollen respected the fact that her family would be _concerned_ if she never returned to her Aunt's apartment. She was unconscious before her head even touched her pillow.

Thursday, Sarah finally spilled the details to her four friends, explaining just how _formidable_ Pollen was...and none of their Kwamis were surprised.

Tikki apologized and tried to help her see it all in a more positive light (apparently Sarah was being trained by someone who had trained _many_ great warriors over the centuries...which might have been _wonderful_ if Sarah _had_ , in fact, _wanted_ to be trained). Plagg just gave her an "I told you so" and laughed (not that she would have expected anything less by this point). Trixx advised her to just do what Pollen asked without question, or flee to a place beyond the Mayor's influence and pray Pollen never found her again, because the alternatives were less pleasant. Duusu questioned her sanity, and then cried out of pity (which was simultaneously touching and annoying).

The Kwamis' chosen were a little more sympathetic, but unless Sarah abandoned her new role there was really nothing to be done about it. And tempting as it was to quit, Sarah wasn't a quitter.

Friday morning, Sarah regretted that she wasn't a quitter, and idly wondered if her aunt would kill her if she ran her alarm clock through the kitchen blender.

…

Friday and Saturday weren't all that bad, considering. Chloe was kept busy with homework, giving Sarah breathing room to catch up on her own homework. An Akuma attack gave her a brief reprieve from the spoiled girl's presence altogether, and Sabrina helped her out with a French Literature assignment.

Sunday morning, however, Chloe woke up with a less than congenial attitude, and unfortunately Sarah and Sabrina had been forced to spend the night again.

As has been previously noted, Sarah was not much of a morning person. Waking up to a screeching blond fury was unlikely to prompt a positive reaction…unless "positive" included throwing couch cushions at said blond's head while spouting some very unladylike language, in three different languages. Chloe just couldn't seem to appreciate being nicknamed after the powerful ruler of a very _hot_ place, or being told she should _return_ to said very hot place.

Sarah would later blame the nuns and her uncles for her inability to watch her mouth around "true evil". Fortunately, while she caught the French just fine, and sort of understood the English, Chloe didn't understand a word of Gaelic cursing.

Unfortunately, Sabrina did.

After a wild variety of insults were thrown back and forth, Pollen decided the best way to deal with the situation was to just sting everyone...which, admittedly, worked quite well.

…

Sarah somehow survived Sunday, though _how_ she knew not. When she awoke sore all over on Monday morning, all she could remember was a blur of black and yellow, and the sound of Chloe's unrivaled screeches. Class that morning was another sort of torture, but at least she was currently caught up with her homework, and she was permitted to see people she genuinely _wanted_ to be around.

And her arrival that morning was rewarded with Kim groaning and face-planting on his desk while Alix cackled in victorious glee. Sarah had successfully survived an entire week of Chloe Bourgeois...with the unfortunate side-effect of her entire body feeling like one giant bruise.

Then she received a surprise video-call from Marinette after school.

"Hey," Marinette greeted her with a friendly smile.

"Hey, how's it going?" Sarah asked.

"Well…I sort of noticed…you seemed sort of stiff today…" Marinette smiled apologetically.

"Yeah, Pollen upped the training regime yesterday…it was pretty brutal," Sarah chuckled sheepishly.

"…you know, um…an old family friend I know runs a small Alternative Chinese Medicine Clinic. I could arrange some free sessions for you. He really works wonders."

Sarah blinked, surprised at the idea, "Uh…wow, um…th-that's very thoughtful of you…but, um, I'm fine, really; I'll get used to it."

"I'm serious, he's really good, and he owes me a favor, _big time_ ," Marinette frowned off to the side briefly before continuing, "It's not too far away either. You could just drop by in the evenings after you've finished your scheduled tortures, and you won't have to come to school the next day walking like a dysfunctional robot."

Sarah winced at the mental picture, "…okay, I see your point…so…what _exactly_ do you mean by "alternative Chinese medicine"…?"

…

The Healer that Marinette recommended, Master Fu, turned out to be the same old man Sarah had helped down a set of stairs little more than a week prior. What were the odds?

In any case, Sarah was grateful for the recommendation, and, to placate her guilt, she offered to help Master Fu with any random chores after her appointments. Marinette face-palmed when she admitted this, and told her she was being ridiculous, but Sarah just didn't feel right accepting such helpful service from such a nice old man without offering something in return. Seriously, she felt _amazing_ whenever he finished her bi-weekly treatments, so what was the harm in harnessing that small burst of energy to help such a cool elder?

Besides, she ended up talking with him during those times, and, as one might expect, it was quite an enlightening experience. She fully enjoyed it, though she was still getting used to the taste of the green tea he seemed to have magically brewing all day…it was a bit of an acquired taste.

…

Chapter End

* * *

Welcome to Kwami Boot-camp, y'all! ONCE YOU ENROLL YOU NEVER ESCAPE!

Yes, I do suspect Pollen could really have such a "militant" personality. Sure, she could be more of a sweet-bee, or even a little high-and mighty, but...I REALLY like the idea of Chloe going through boot camp, lol. Regardless, I doubt Pollen is a push-over, and I'm sure she'll be able to handle Chloe one way or another. ^_^

Nah, I don't think Fu PURPOSELY tricked Adrien into being emotional blackmail...wait...who am I kidding? -_-

And Fu is way too sneaky for you, Marinette! Sarah's not going to catch HIM slipping up, nope! Which is fortunate for him, because Sarah does NOT appreciate the way her mettle is being tested. Tee-hee…please don't tell her where I live...o.o...

...*clears throat*...

...soooooo...was "Pandora's Box" not quite what you were expecting? I never said it was an ACTUAL box...whatever gave you THAT idea, pray tell? YOU CAN PROVE NOTHING! *ducks behind couch* YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE!

...okay, yes, I am slightly evil, but that was just too fun of an opportunity to pass up, and I am too weak to resist...this entire story is a testament of my lack of will-power and self-restraint... .

Anyway, it made me happy to see some people over on AO3 excited at the prospect of Sarah receiving a Miraculous and getting to be a super hero...unfortunately, there remains the issue that Sarah knows things that make her a liability, and she needs to be running AWAY from Akuma NOT toward them, lol. Lets all blame Hawkmoth for Sarah's woes, shall we? (Pfft, MY fault? What? Of course not, don't be ridiculous...*avoids eye contact*...IT'S STILL HIS FAULT, OKAY?! XD)

Final Notes:

Kids, don't gamble. Someone else is always getting your money, and you rarely win anyone ease's. -_-

And if you did not laugh at SOME point during this chapter, then I have failed at life. o.o

* * *

...alright, I have a little challenge for all of you who are reading this, right now...if you enjoyed this chapter, comment with a smiley face. That is all. Smiles make me happy. I like to know that people are smiling...so if you liked this nonsense, please give me smiles. ^_^


	8. No Excuses

Chapter 8: No Excuses

Life began to fall into a bit of a rhythm. Riding with Chloe to and from school, crazy work-outs Mid-week and Weekends (unless something mercifully came up), chi-healing sessions the evenings after escaping the torment, keeping her family as oblivious to certain things as humanly possible, smoothing things over with would-be Akuma victims whenever Chloe spat out venom faster than Sarah could cut in, "hiding" Chloe whenever an Akuma happened (regardless of whether it was her fault or not), homework, dutifully cursing Hawkmoth before bed, and mentally deconstructing her alarm clock in the morning.

During this time, Sarah suffered many defeats during one-on-one combat training. Chloe was a lot stronger than one would expect from someone so prissy, and either finished things quickly and efficiently, or she threw a mini tantrum. Sarah may or may not have sustained a few "mild" injuries from Sabrina, who was apparently still learning to control her strength. Pretty much the only times she ever beat either of them was during a few aquatic lessons (she owed a few of her older cousins another round of thank-yous for all the times they'd taken her and some of their other cousins snorkeling back in Ireland)…but considering the sort of environment Paris presented, that probably wouldn't do her much good unless an Akuma flooded the city or threw her in the Seine (which was not a nice place to be swimming in, even if it _had_ been legal to do so).

In any case, she was predominantly Pollen's weakest pupil, and she received no small mercy because of it. But on the positive side, she was getting good enough that Chloe was throwing more and more tantrums (even if Sarah didn't even win in the end, as was always the case). Of course, this also meant Chloe was more irritable, and a more irritable Chloe was not only a royal pain, she was also more prone to getting someone Akumatized.

Then Monday happened.

Sarah was understandably frustrated when Chloe managed to get someone Akumatized, _despite_ her being there to try to soothe the emotionally traumatized young lady who had become the target of Chloe's sour mood.

And, of _course_ , the person Akumatized turned out to be a minion-maker…though, on the positive side, this Akuma's minions couldn't speak, and thus couldn't betray any secrets if Hawkmoth tried to be clever…still, Sarah could have lived a _very_ content life without knowing what it felt like to be a cocker spaniel for approximately half an hour. Who in the world _wanted_ to spend such a large chunk of their precious Lunch break barking at squirrels and kids in animal-themed suits?

And for once, Sarah sort-of wished Chat Noir had become a minion…partially for the sake of irony (seriously, a cat-themed super-hero being turned into a dog? That would have been _hilarious_ ), and partially because he appeared keen on reminding her of how _adorable_ she had been as a puppy…and then laughed when she reflexively growled at him. (Which was not something he should have been laughing at, honestly, what if she was suffering from side-effects?! Okay, yes, that was ridiculous, but still, she was miffed and embarrassed by the whole thing.)

Chloe being Chloe, she didn't apologize. Sarah complained and lectured her all the way to Wednesday, but still the blond refused to see what she had done wrong. So, who could really blame her when Sarah soon gave up on lecturing, and instead began ranting?

Unfortunately, the Bee Kwami wasn't too happy to hear Sarah's opinion on whether Chloe was "worthy" of being Honey Bee or not, even if it _was_ true that Chloe wasn't taking things as seriously as she was supposed to be. (And to be fair, perhaps Sarah shouldn't have been quite so nasty about it. She _knew_ she knew better than to fall to Chloe's level, and once she calmed down she would regret that she had.)

"Enough of this!" Pollen flew up between the teenage girls, easily disrupting the verbal assaults with her presence of power.

Once she was certain that Chloe's mouth had clamped shut, she turned on Sarah, fixing her up with those faceted, gem-like eyes, "Problematic as she is, Chloe is my chosen. Remember that it is not only her you will be insulting when you claim she is unworthy. You may not understand the reason why I have chosen her yet, but in time she _will_ become what she needs to be. Am I understood?"

Sarah couldn't do much more than nod mutely, her previous fire snuffed out by the Kwami's severity. She still had no idea why Chloe had been chosen (even if she was, admittedly, proving to be a fearsome fighter), but Pollen was saying _she_ had chosen Chloe. What right did Sarah have to argue?

Once Pollen was satisfied that she had been understood, Sarah learned what happened when you upset the Bee Kwami. She made you clean. It didn't matter if the surrounding area appeared perfectly respectable, there was always _something_ that wasn't quite right, and Pollen would _not_ rest until the problem was rectified.

Plagg _had_ said she was a slave-driver, he just forgot to mention she was a clean freak as well. Not that Sarah intended to bother complaining to him, since he would probably just laugh, a lot.

Sarah knew a fair amount about cleaning, for which she was now eternally grateful, but Sabrina was shockingly _brilliant_ at it. Thus, for the sake of appeasing the still-agitated Kwami sooner, Sarah began asking Sabrina for advice. Fortunately, despite the friction between Sarah and Chloe, Sabrina was more than happy to share her knowledge, and turned out to be really good at explaining things.

Chloe, however, was not happy to see her best friend spending so much time with one of her "enemies", and soon tried to break it up. Least she become the target of Pollen's wrath, Chloe went for subtlety, and stole Sabrina's attention away by demanding to be taught, and interrupting every time Sarah began to ask another question.

Not wanting to trouble Sabrina, Sarah let Chloe's obnoxious behavior slide…and did her best not to grin manically, because this meant that the ever-proud Chloe was actually _working_. That, and it was honestly kind of funny to watch. Terrifyingly unreal, yes, but still funny.

…

Despite Pollen's apparent faith in Chloe, however, Sarah's doubt remained. Even when Chloe finally seemed to be figuring out that chewing people out for their "flaws" tended to result in more work for herself, it didn't stop her from finding new ways to make them miserable.

One of the things that bothered Sarah the most was something she couldn't speak of to anyone (except for maybe Tikki and Trixx, but they were rarely available for one-on-one chats, unfortunately). It was perhaps honest proof that Chloe _could_ be a worse fiend than Hawkmoth himself. She was attempting to turn the already dreaded love-square into something _far_ more horrendous…

A _hexagon_.

Chloe was trying to make their lives a living bee joke! It had been frustrating enough when she had only been pursuing Adrien, but now she was all over Ladybug as Honey Bee too!

Well, okay, _maybe_ Chloe wasn't pursuing Ladybug romantically, but by how much she hung off her like a tree ornament it was hard to tell sometimes. And regardless of whether it was actually possible for Chloe to succeed in her hexagonal pursuits or not, her attempts were still disrupting all progress between Adrien and Marinette, on _two_ fronts! THIS WAS NOT OKAY!

And Sarah _really_ wished she could do something about it, but there were only so many ways she could keep Chloe away from Adrien before Chloe went on _another_ rampage for her to contend with, and trying to convince Chloe that Ladybug was _not_ a freaking Christmas Tree wasn't really panning out either. There wasn't much she could do to help fix the issue, unfortunately. All she could really do was bang her head on her desk, or a random wall, or whatever suitable surface she had available, repeatedly every time Chloe ruined a perfectly lined up Adrienette moment.

Adrien was beginning to wonder if Sarah had lost what little sanity she had left, not that she could blame the poor, oblivious boy.

…

Chloe was driving her nuts, true, but Sarah believed she was adapting. Like water off a duck's back, she was getting better at letting it go whenever Chloe was Chloe. There was no point in getting angry, or trying to reason with the self-absorbed brat, and, likely due to Pollen's constant threats, Chloe was getting better at keeping her mouth shut.

At least…up till Sunday morning when an Akuma called The Whiner (was Hawkmoth seriously trying to _annoy_ them into submission?) managed to drag out his battle for the Miraculous for the better part of the day.

When Chloe returned to her hotel room, while Pollen was ravenously chomping away at her Cayenne peppers, the blond had nothing but complaints.

It was completely hypocritical, considering Chloe herself had been Akumatized once (a fact Alya had gladly shared with Sarah), but she had nothing but cruel things to say about the victims of Hawkmoth that day. She wasn't the least bit sympathetic to the poor souls who had been attacked at their lowest moment, or even the people who needed protection from Akumas just because they happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Why do they have to make _my_ life harder?" Chloe continued to vent, either oblivious or uncaring of the fact that Sarah's gaping mouth was clenching into a snarl.

Perhaps Sarah should have known better than to let it anger her so, she already knew full well what Chloe was like, and she knew she needed to keep a level head, but even though she herself had somehow managed to avoid falling under Hawkmoth's spell, several people she genuinely cared for _had_ been Akumatized. Chloe had _no_ place blaming the victims, and Sarah wasn't going to stand back and let her.

"It's not _about_ you, Chloe!" Sarah snapped, "Those people are turned into the worst versions of themselves because _Hawkmoth_ struck them down when they were too emotionally unstable to think rationally! You were given the power to protect those people, not to make fun of them for needing help! Nobody _wanted_ Hawkmoth to appear! Nobody _wants_ to be turned against their friends and loved ones! How can you just _sit_ there and say such heartless things, when you're the reason _several_ good people were left so broken and hurt that Hawkmoth _could_ prey upon them?!"

"It's not _my_ fault they were so breakable in the first place!" Chloe hmphed, indignant.

Oh _h*ll_ no. She did _not_ just say that.

By this point, Sarah was just _one_ inhibition away from punching her in the face, "You have _no_ idea what it's like to be in their shoes! You have no right to judge them!"

"I'm the one _saving_ their sorry butts, I have every right!" Chloe shot back.

"That's enough-"

Sarah didn't stick around to hear Pollen's lecture. At that moment, it was either storm out, or engage in senseless violence, regardless of how painful those "attitude adjustment" stings were. She told herself a little air would help clear her head; that a little walk would calm her down.

It didn't.

The more she thought about Chloe, the angrier she became. How could someone, who was _supposed_ to be a hero, be so self-centered and heartless?! It wasn't right! It wasn't fair! Chloe didn't deserve to be Honey Bee! Paris deserved _so_ much better than that bratty, prissy little-

She paused her mental rant when she noticed something flying in the air above her.

Oh, for the love of all things good, that had _better_ be a pigeon-nope, not a pigeon, definitely not a pigeon, sh*t…wait…was it…flying towards...AW _H*LL_ NO! ABORT! ABORT! ABORT!

Realizing it was coming for her, Sarah shrieked and took off running in the opposite direction. (All that track training was beginning to pay off.) As she shot past civilians, she called back to them with an urgent request that they would _hopefully_ understand without too much trouble.

"SOMEBODY CALL LADYBUG!"

…

All hopes that the Akuma would realize she was unwilling and give up the chase proved to be in vain, as several minutes later she was _still_ running and dodging the persistent little bugger. Fortunately, Pollen's training had not only improved her speed: her stamina had never been better.

Then, sadly, she slipped on a patch of wet grass, and landed square on her back. Winded by the fall, she saw the butterfly diving for her, and knew it was going to hit her. She closed her eyes and grit her teeth as she desperately waved her arms in an attempt to shoo it away, praying the last time hadn't been a fluke and that she would be able to reject it again.

"No more evil doing for you, little Akuma!"

Sarah's eyes flew open, and she looked up to see Ladybug already purifying the butterfly. Flopping back in relief, she let out the breath she'd been holding.

A moment later, Ladybug was standing over her, peering down at her in concern, "Are you alright?"

Sarah winced, "...I think I need a vacation."

…

When Sarah came to school separately the next day, refusing to even look Chloe's way, Alix approached her with a frown that reeked of disappointment.

"Morning, Alix," Sarah sighed, suspecting what she wanted to ask.

As if Sarah wasn't already feeling lousy about almost being Akumatized, _again_ , some random person had recorded the event on their smart phone, and posted the video online for all to see. A brief look at the comments revealed that the viewers recognized her from the last near-akumatization, and they were even joking about it being an annual event now, since the last time had happened on October 6th, and this time had happened on October 1st. It was mortifying enough to know that herself, but, from the whispers flying around, she was pretty sure the whole school knew it now too.

"…she finally got to you, huh?" Alix sighed.

"…much as I hate to admit it, she _did_ finally get under my skin…" Sarah looked down, "…I'm taking a little break to clear my head. I'm not going to be any help to anyone if I get Akumatized, so I'm going to cool off before I go back to baby-sitting her…sorry, Alix…"

Alix sighed again, displeased but not surprised, "Don't worry about it. Betting against Max is usually a lost cause…you came pretty d*mn close though."

Sarah nodded, but felt even more forlorn as she thought of how she had been _eight_ _days_ _away_ from proving Max wrong, "Yeah…thanks, Alix."

Alix barely nodded before heading back to her desk, muttering something in an irritated tone to Max as she passed. Max simply nodded, unsurprised, and to his credit didn't gloat over it.

Sarah could feel gazes burning her skin throughout the day, but she dutifully ignored them. She felt lousy, and frustrated with herself, and didn't want to face anyone for a while. She knew they had to be disappointed. Some were probably more concerned than anything, but the fact that she'd made them worry wasn't much better. She could barely offer a slip of a smile to her friends, just to express, "I'm having an off day, but I'll be fine later."

…

After being explicitly told by both Sarah and Ladybug that Sarah needed her space for a while, Chloe had left her alone. Sarah, careful not to look her way, never saw how the heiress had paused before leaving on Monday, and looked Sarah's way with a sort of automatic expectation. Catching herself a moment too late, Chloe had then stomped out without a word, mentally berating herself for concerning herself with an "annoying loser" like Sarah, and then denying she was even concerned to begin with.

Sabrina almost said something when a similar thing happened on Tuesday, but shut her mouth immediately when Chloe shot her a warning glare.

…

Tuesday evening, Sarah considered asking someone to train with her, but chickened out and went to a gym alone instead. The silence was eerie, and lonely.

Wednesday, she spent the day at Rose's house with her and Juleka. (Pity-parties with Marinette were awesome, but nothing could beat tea-time with Rose, or make-overs with Juleka, especially when both girls were excited for Halloween, despite how little France typically celebrated the holiday.) She tried not to think too much about how peaceful and mild her days were turning out without Chloe and Pollen in the mix, and how that suddenly seemed _weird_ to her.

Thursday, she finally looked Chloe's way before heading to her desk that morning. Chloe met her eyes, and both girls were startled. Chloe looked away first, and Sarah awkwardly went to take her seat without a word. The two girls studiously avoided eye-contact with each other, failing to realize that a few pairs of eyes were observing them in silence.

If anyone had bothered to notice, Adrien was clearly considering a course of action.

…

"Can I ask you for a little advice?" Sarah questioned over the phone, staring at her ceiling from her bed, hugging a pillow with one arm.

"Of course," Marinette was quick to reply.

"…I can't keep "vacationing" forever, but…how do I go back?" Sarah sounded as lost as she felt, "Pollen is probably furious with me, and it will be like starting all over again…I'm not sure what to do…"

"Are you ready to go back?" Marinette questioned.

"…I'm always going to find Chloe irritating, but I don't think I'm in danger of being Akumatized now, so I should really get back on the ball," Sarah shrugged, despite the fact no one could see the gesture.

"I think you should give it one more day," Tikki chimed in.

Sarah blinked, wondering if she'd heard right.

"Tikki?" Marinette questioned.

"I have a lucky feeling," Tikki giggled.

"…are you sure, Tikki?" Sarah asked, "I thought I was supposed to prioritize keeping an eye on Chloe."

"I'm sure," Tikki chirped in affirmation, "So you shouldn't worry about it tonight. I'm sure you'll know what to do when the time comes!"

Sarah looked doubtful.

"…Tikki's right, there's no reason to worry about it tonight," Marinette spoke, "And if you still have doubts tomorrow, you know how to find me."

Sarah smiled a little, "…yeah, okay. Thanks, you two."

"No problem, Sarah."

…

Lucky feeling or not, Tikki turned out to be right. Before Sarah could head home for lunch on Friday, Chloe walked up to her. Startled, Sarah paused part-way through putting her notebook in her bag. Nathaniel was quick to put some distance between himself and the two girls, but pretty much everyone else still in the room paused whatever they were doing to watch.

"…you…" Chloe's expression of bravo collapsed for a moment, and was barely regained as she looked elsewhere, "… _maybe_ you understand people a little better than I do…"

Sarah blinked, a tad lost, "…huh?"

"I'm saying-…!" Chloe shifted, uncomfortable, "…maybe…you weren't _completely_ wrong…"

Needing something to help her understand what was happening, Sarah glanced around the room briefly. All but two people in the room were more-or-less gob-smacked. Adrien and Sabrina looked like every fiber of their being was cheering intently for whatever _this_ was.

"…about…?" Sarah asked slowly, beginning to wonder if she had slipped and hit her head at some point.

"…some things…" Chloe replied reluctantly.

"…Chloe…" Sarah hesitated, "…are you… _complementing_ me?"

"I-…!" Chloe hesitated again, avoiding eye-contact with anyone, "…it's a _little_ less boring with you around…and you're not _always_ useless…"

Sarah stopped herself from repeating the question, and instead tried to read deeper into the situation, "…what exactly are you trying to say, Chloe?"

"I-I'm saying you need to stop slacking off, because Sabrina misses having you around!" Chloe spouted, crossing her arms and turning her back on Sarah.

Sabrina was currently sporting a blank look, and Adrien was face-palming.

"…right…" Sarah said slowly, trying to wrap her head around Chloe's odd behavior.

Was she trying to say Sarah needed to return to work? Why was she so…concerned? Was Pollen behind this? Even though Pollen hadn't said a word to her since the near-Akumatization?

'"…so…you're saying you want me to end my vacation…because Sabrina misses me?" Sarah tried.

"O-obviously!" Chloe flipped her hair.

"…but…Sabrina understands…that I'll return to my post as soon as I'm sure your behavior won't set me off again…she wouldn't want you to be at risk if my emotions are unstable…"

It was pretty d*mn obvious that Chloe was fidgeting.

"…if that's all…I can talk to _her_ later…" Sarah said, thinking of Pollen.

"…I…might… _somewhat_ regret…the things I said to you last time…"

Okay, either Pollen had _really_ upped the threats, or one of them was suffering brain-damage. Probably Sarah, because if Chloe was the one suffering brain damage, Adrien and Sabrina wouldn't be bouncing with absolute glee in their eyes…and now Marinette was getting excited too. Yup, Sarah was definitely suffering from brain-damage, from a mysterious injury she didn't recall receiving…

…or this was actually happening, and HOLY SH*T, CHLOE WAS _APOLOGIZING_ FOR SOMETHING?! WHAT THE ACTUAL F*CKING H*LL?!

"…oh…I see…" Sarah looked down, feeling embarrassed for reasons she couldn't quite explain, "…that's…very nice of you to say, Chloe."

"O-of course it is!" Chloe asserted.

Okay, so _now_ it was obvious why Chloe seemed so embarrassed…she was trying to _apologize_. Something _that_ out of character had to be rough.

"…I guess…I should talk to Sabrina…" Sarah was pretty sure one of them would die of embarrassment soon if she didn't do something, "…maybe…I'm ready to give it another try…"

"You are?!" Chloe whirled around, surprised.

Something like hope shone in Chloe's eyes, and Sarah found herself smiling, "I guess you're going to be stuck with me again, huh?"

"S-sure, whatever…" Chloe said, walking back to her desk, and grabbing her things.

Adrien deemed Chloe's clumsy apology was worthy of a toothy grin and a shoulder pat, and Chloe was too embarrassed to even think of taking advantage of it. Their classmates, who apparently had been so captivated by the odd sighting that they had forgotten to move until now, shot looks of amazement between Chloe and Sarah as they quietly filtered out of the room.

"Well, are you coming, or not?" Chloe demanded, waiting by the door with a giddy Sabrina.

Sarah blinked, then laughed as she grabbed her stuff, "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming!"

…

Chloe had _apologized_ , in _class_ no less. Granted it was a _terrible_ apology, but Sarah felt positively giddy at the thought of it. (And when Alya later pointed out that she had received this apology on the uncelebrated anniversary of her first almost-akumatization, Sarah laughed hysterically.) So, Sarah returned to her "volunteer work", accepted a harsh (and surprisingly warm) scolding from Pollen, and resumed training with Chloe and Sabrina.

She wouldn't admit it, but Sarah found herself growing oddly fond of Chloe's company after that. Chloe was getting a little better at biting her tongue when she felt the urge to tear someone down, and there were times she could be…strangely considerate of others. She was still overwhelmingly _Chloe_ , some things would never change, but…something _had_ changed. Chloe was taking her role as a hero more seriously, she was taking _people_ more seriously, and there was something admirable in that…even if she was _still_ an egotistical elitist who pointed out the flaws in others like it was her sole purpose in life. At least that meant she had a real talent for baiting Akuma, which meant her sharp tongue _could_ be helpful when she used it right.

…

Time slipped by, perhaps more pleasantly than before. All Saints Holiday was fast approaching, and Sarah was very much looking forward to visiting her family in Ireland. She was a little excited at the prospect of finally winning an arm-wrestling match with her cousins, but more than anything she just couldn't wait to hug her parents again. Two months had flown by faster than she might have thought, but it was still far too long to go without their warm hugs (not that her Aunt Therese wasn't affectionate, but, you know).

Chloe seemed a little…disappointed when Sarah brought up her plans that would take up the majority of the 2-week break. Pollen agreed that it was important to spend time with her family, but reminded her to keep up with her training while she was gone.

"Too bad, I might have invited you to come with me to Daddy's Island retreat if you weren't so busy."

Chloe said it in her usual, dismissive way, but Sarah saw through it, and thanked her for the thought. She was sure Chloe and Sabrina would have a great time on their mini vacation. Even Pollen seemed to be looking forward to it.

After finishing their last training session before the break, Chloe dragged Sarah and Sabrina out for a shopping trip. The close proximity of _highly_ expensive items made Sarah's skin crawl, but it was a relatively painless experience otherwise.

Then, Chloe had a somewhat amusing case of paranoia.

"Ugh! There he is again!"

"Is something wrong, Chloe?" Sarah questioned.

"That weird old man!" Chloe pointed out across the street, looking at Sarah with a frown, "I swear, I've seen that lame Hawaiian shirt all _over_ the place this year!"

When Sarah looked, however, she saw no one fitting the description, "What Hawaiian shirt?"

"Right-what?!" Chloe gasped as she looked too, jaw fallen in shock, then she stomped her foot in frustration, "How does he always do that?! I look away for one second, and then he disappears!"

"Chloe…are you sure it's always the same guy?" Sarah questioned, "There are plenty of people who wear Hawaiian shirts."

Perhaps it was a tad odd to be wearing something like that in autumn, but it wasn't too cold out that day. It was permissible.

"He's a tiny little bald-headed Asian, wearing the exact same red shirt every time, _yes_ I'm sure!" Chloe snarked.

"I've seen him too," Sabrina tried to assist.

Sarah blinked, "Wait…that sounds a lot like someone I know."

"What? _Who_?" Chloe wanted to know.

"There's a Chinese Healer who runs a clinic not too far from our school. He's probably just out minding his own business when you see him. There's nothing _weird_ about him, he's just a kind-hearted old man. You can ask Marinette, he's an old friend of her family."

"Ugh, like I care what _she_ thinks," Chloe huffed, "And he is _definitely_ weird! He just _vanishes_ into thin air! An old man shouldn't be able to move that fast!"

Sarah rolled her eyes, annoyed with Chloe's attitude toward _two_ people she cared about, and fully believing she was making mountains out of ant hills, "Chloe, you're stressing over nothing. I go to his clinic all the time, and there's nothing weird about him. He's a perfectly normal, harmless elder. Nothing you need to be freaking out about."

His teapot, on the other hand, _might_ have been enchanted to be constantly full of green tea, but mentioning that probably wouldn't help matters.

Chloe growled and changed the subject, realizing Sarah thought she was nuts and refusing to make a fool of herself. Sarah never heard Pollen chuckle softly to herself in Chloe's bag. If she had, she might have taken Chloe's suspicions a little more seriously, because the super-serious Kwami was rarely amused by anything.

…

Surprisingly, the beginning of the school break saw very little of Hawkmoth's fury, which was fortunate because Adrien had to leave the country with his father for the first week, and Alya's family left town for a bit as well. It made Sarah a little nervous to know that, for almost an entire week, all that stood between Paris and Hawkmoth would be Ladybug and Peacock Blue. She tried to laugh it off when her family caught her checking the news for updates countless times, but while her parents weren't aware of all of her secrets, they knew she was worried about her friends in Paris.

She calmed down when first Alya, then Adrien finally returned to Paris, but _right_ after that it was as if Hawkmoth had come out of freaking hibernation. In that time the Ladyblog was spilling over with news of more Akumas, one after another. The heroes were coming out of it okay, but she imagined the unruly numbers were taxing. Sarah wished she could do something to help, and that Chloe would return to Paris to do her part soon.

She began to believe she had the absolute best parents ever when they suggested going to visit their French relatives well before she had intended on returning.

Then, while talking with a French cousin she hadn't actually seen for some time, and enduring a few pestering questions about the famous Adrien Agreste, Sarah happened upon an idea.

A wickedly marvelous idea.

…

Alya agreed, it _was_ a wickedly marvelous idea, and they were going to use it ASAP, _before_ Chloe came back to town and tried to ruin all things wonderful and Adrinette.

Sarah's fangirling cousin had a relative that happened to own a nice little café on the far side of Paris. It was the perfect set-up, and this _slightly_ older third-cousin was perfectly willing to play her part (because although she _was_ a tad disappointed to know she was helping _another_ girl try to win the handsome model's heart, she, like most of Sarah's family relations, _adored_ a good romance). All they needed was for Alya to convince her boyfriend and their best friends to come to the café (minus Adrien's bodyguard), and voila! Their brilliant plot would set in motion!

…

Their brilliant plan was failing. Horribly. Sarah's cousin was not-so-subtly hitting on Adrien, like she was supposed to be (she'd even gotten a couple things autographed by this point), and Adrien was growing more and more uncomfortable with her advances, as they had hoped.

The problem was with Marinette. She was supposed to _do_ something about the love-of-her-life being preyed upon by some wild fangirl, but so far all she had accomplished was a mangled fork (which, while impressive, was helping absolutely no one). Alya was trying to prompt Marinette into action, but the girl was positively floundering!

Then Sarah, sitting in a nearby booth, wearing a perfectly reasonable disguise that included a blond wig (which she was borrowing from an older second-cousin with some eccentric hobbies) and sunglasses, received a text. From Nino. And he was staring at her.

She had to hurriedly text back, telling him to stop gaping at her before someone else noticed, warning him that Alya would smite them _both_ if he busted her now, and promising to explain _why_ she was in the ridiculous get-up _later_.

Desperate to salvage the situation somehow, Sarah began texting Marinette.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Why are you letting her do that to him?! He's clearly uncomfortable, OMG, don't make me come over there!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [YOU'RE WATCHING THIS?!]

 **Sarah:** [YES, AND IT'S PAINFUL! SO PAINFUL! DO SOMETHING!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [LIKE WHAT?!]

* * *

Sarah texted her cousin, telling her to "take a call", and so her cousin then left to do so.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [OMG GOGOGO!

 **Sarah:** [GRAB THAT BOY AND RUN FOR IT!

 **Sarah:** [I'LL COVER YOU JUST GO!]

* * *

Marinette did it. She threw down a wad of bills on the table, grabbed Adrien's hand, and _ran_. It was absolutely beautiful. Sarah almost cried. Okay, her eyes watered _slightly_ and she sniffled _once_.

Mission accomplished, she pulled off her sunglasses (she could bother with the wig later), and walked over to where Alya and Nino were left gaping after the grand escape.

"...okay, so, _that_ happened..." she said, catching their attention.

"Uh... _what_ just happened?" her cousin popped out of hiding.

"Something not according to plan, but possibly ten times better," Sarah grinned, "Thanks again for the help."

The look on Nino's face was priceless.

"...well, it was fun while it lasted," her cousin chuckled, "Be sure to tell me how it went, alright?"

"Will do," Sarah nodded in full seriousness.

"Cool, later then," her cousin shrugged and walked off.

"...you _staged_ this?!" Nino gaped.

Sarah cleared her throat, shuffling her feet like a child about to be lectured.

"Alya can you _believe_ thi-..." Nino paused when he realized his girlfriend was avoiding eye-contact, "... _seriously_?!"

"Uh...wow! Would you look at that?! Marinette's texting me..." Alya was conveniently distracted by her now frantically buzzing phone.

Priceless Nino expressions were priceless.

"You can't really be _that_ surprised, can you?" Sarah smiled sheepishly, "And in our defense...it really shouldn't have taken _that_ _long_ for Marinette to do something..."

After another round of faces and sputtering, Nino finally just groaned and face-planted on the table, "...no one tells me _anything_..."

"Sorry, babe, but you're _terrible_ at keeping secrets," Alya patted his shoulder sympathetically with her free hand, eyes darting between him and her phone.

"Am not," he grumbled.

"And _really_ , Sarah?" Alya ignored his protests, "What happened to keeping things on a _need_ - _to_ - _know_ basis?"

"What _happened_ was that your boyfriend has eyes like a freaking _hawk_ , and we're lucky he didn't give me away before we completed our mission," Sarah huffed, "It was either come clean now, or wait for him to figure it out himself."

Nino gave her a look at the pun.

"Anyway, how's Marinette doing?" Sarah asked, curious.

"I just finished advising her to disguise Adrien with vendor merch, and to keep him "safe" until we can meet them at the movie theater," Alya's smirk widened as her phone dinged, " _Aaaand_ apparently she's following my advice!"

Right after high-fiving Alya, Sarah's phone buzzed.

* * *

 **Macaron Angel:** [I CANNOT BELIEVE I LET YOU TALK ME INTO THIS!]

* * *

Sarah didn't even try to suppress her evil grin.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Be careful, that creeper girl got away! Make sure you don't let her find Adrien!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [UGH!

 **Macaron Angel:** [WHY DO I FEEL LIKE THIS IS SOMEHOW ALL YOUR FAULT?!]

* * *

Sarah snickered.

* * *

 **Sarah:** [Dude, not my fault your feet have more courage than your mouth. :P

 **Sarah:** [Seriously, it is not my fault you kidnapped your crush.

 **Sarah:** [That was ALL you.

 **Sarah:** [I'm so proud of you! T^T]

 **Macaron Angel:** [NOT HELPING!]

 **Sarah:** [^_^]

 **Macaron Angel:** [XP]

* * *

" _Aaaand_ now she's _definitely_ going to guard him well," Sarah smirked, "By the way, she knows now that I was watching you guys, but she never actually _saw_ me...so maybe mention you saw me "run by", or something? Maybe I helped you guys "distract" the harassing fangirl to aide their escape? I dunno, just as long as she doesn't think I was here to spy on you guys on _purpose..._ "

"Or that you recruited a girl to harass Adrien?" Nino was still judging.

"Or that the girl harassing Adrien was my third cousin," Sarah added, "That would be awesome too."

"Or that _I_ had anything to do with this," Alya threw in.

"Because Marinette will be furious if she finds out," Sarah said, more serious now, "And if Adrien finds out, he's going to question _why_ we did it, and if he learns about _that_..."

"The world as we know it will come to an end," Alya nodded sagely.

"Either in a really good way, or a catastrophically _bad_ way," Sarah nodded too.

"Sooooo...think you can handle being a co-conspirator with us?" Alya leaned in close to Nino, mischief dancing in her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, I know the drill," he made a show of zipping his lips shut.

"Have I ever told you that you make sarcasm look sexy?"

Sarah began inching away, distinctly uncomfortable.

"While trying to butter me up? Maybe," he snarked.

"Doesn't mean it's not true," Alya grinned, bumping noses with him, "You know you're hot stuff."

"Yeah, I know," he replied, beginning to grin back, "Just like I know exactly what you're doing."

"But you love it anyway," Alya teased.

"I love _you_ ," he teased back.

Alya blushed a little, "Cheater."

"Mmm-hmm," he smirked a little, "Doesn't mean it isn't true."

"Oh shut up," she said before _making_ him shut up.

" _Okay_! I'm just gonna go now! Later, guys!" Sarah finally squeaked, turning robotically on her heel to leave, pretending not to hear the giggles and whispering behind her as Alya continued to be mushy with her boyfriend.

Maybe if Sarah was lucky, she would be able to locate Adrien and Marinette. The lack of texts was hopefully a good sign. Either things were going so well that Marinette didn't feel the need to rant anxiously or beg for help and advice, or things were going so badly she didn't have time to text back...fortunately, there was no news of an Akuma yet-

She only thought it.

Gosh dang it, she didn't even _say_ it!

And yet, there it was...the tall-tell shrieks of terror as people fled from a magical menace. There was just no denying it. It was a very distinguished sound.

" _Noooooo_ …" Sarah whined.

 _Just_ when things were going _so_ _well_ … _really_ , Hawkmoth? REALLY?

"Babe, hide here with Sarah, okay? I gotta go," Alya was out in a flash, phone out as if her sole intention was to play reporter.

Nino paused and looked at Sarah.

Sarah sighed, "…if she asks, I'll tell her you ran out to look for Adrien and Marinette, okay?"

Nino flashed her a sheepish, grateful look, and ran out too.

All that effort for Project Hamster… _wasted_. Hawkmoth was _officially_ the enemy of love!

…

Ladybug was definitely going to kill her this time, no doubt about it. Sarah was a dead girl walking, and she knew it.

Reason number one: Sarah did _not_ stay hidden like she was supposed to during Akuma attacks.

Reason number two: Sarah threw an abandoned baguette at the Akuma-of-the-day and made fun of their costume, like the currently absent Honey Bee usually would have.

Reason number three: Sarah almost got herself pelted by gooey "chewed" gum (eww) by angering the Akuma-of-the-day.

Reason number four: Sarah was saved from the icky threat when her cousin ran out after her and tackled her out of harm's way.

Reason number five: Ladybug recognized her cousin.

Reason number six: not only did Sarah's cousin inform Ladybug of their relationship while thanking her for saving them, she _also_ decided to be a huge hypocrite and say, "I'm so sorry about this troublemaker. She's _always_ getting into mischief. Even today she had me help her pull a prank on her school friends! I really don't know what we're going to do with her!"

Reason number seven: Ladybug. Was not. stupid. (Selectively oblivious? Yes. But stupid she was not.)

Sarah sort of hoped it would be a swift demise, because Chat Noir wasn't stupid either…and Adrien was going to have questions.

Maybe the Universe was trying to tell her something. Maybe she was meddling in affairs she shouldn't be meddling in…and maybe she should stop being stubborn and listen.

…

"Mayday! Mayday! Marinette and Adrien know about my cousin!" Sarah whimpered into her phone, hiding in yet another random broom closet.

"Oh sh*t," Alya cringed on the other end of the call, "How?"

"I can't even _begin_ to say how bad my luck is today," Sarah groaned, "Regardless, neither of them know you were in on it, so if you want to stay out of hot water don't give them any clues."

"What about you?"

"I will go down in history," Sarah spoke with dramatic reverence, "They will remember me as the girl who failed to get her two oblivious friends together, because Hawkmoth, the enemy of love, blindsided her with the threat of bubblegum. They shall build a shrine for me in this broom closet, and for years to come I shall be mourned by janitors everywhere."

"…girl, are you seriously in a broom closet?"

"Do you really need me to answer that question?"

"Don't they _lock_ those things?"

"You have a Kwami, I have a hair pin."

Alya let out an amused scoff.

"Fortunately for you, I love mischief _far_ too much to be offended by that remark," Trixx hummed.

Sarah's phone dinged as she received a text, and Sarah whimpered when she saw it was from Marinette.

"Who knew that doom could sound so cheery," Trixx quipped.

Sarah made a weak attempt at a laugh before ending the call with a reasonably dramatic farewell.

…

Instead of reply to Marinette right away, Sarah chose to procrastinate, and called Adrien first.

"Okay, Adrien, before you say anything, I just want to say I am really sorry about what I had my cousin put you through today…I had a semi-good reason for it!" Sarah spat out quick.

She could hear Plagg snickering in the background.

"Color me curious," Adrien told her.

"…okay, so I've sort of noticed that you and Marinette are still a bit…awkward. It's actually been worrying me for quite a while now…"

"Er…okay?"

"So, I was pretty sure most of it was Marinette being shy, and that made you feel shy too, so I figured if I could get Marinette to break out of her shell, then it would sort of smooth things out…you know? And since we all know Marinette loves to help people, I knew that if she thought you were in trouble that she would try to protect you…and I figured that the easiest, safest way to do that was to ask my third-cousin, who neither of you knew, to act like a creepy fangirl and make you feel uncomfortable enough that Marinette would do _something_ …and, well, it was _working_ , until Hawkmoth threw that sticky situation our way…"

"…Sarah?"

"…yes?"

"It…sounds crazy…and I should purrobably tell you that you shouldn't do things like this, because I am your friend, and I'm purrty sure I should be _discouraging_ you from pulling stunts like this, but…you're right, it sort-of worked. She was in battle-mode looking out for your cousin, but she was surprisingly at ease around me. She even laughed at a joke I made…it was fun. You know, until I had to run off on her to deal with the Akuma."

"…you're not mad that I let my third-cousin borderline sexually harass you for the better part of ten minutes?"

"…promise me you'll never do it again?"

"How specifically do you want me to promise?"

"Sarah."

"Okay, okay! I _purromise_ , I will _never_ again sacrifice you to a fangirl-… _without_ your consent…even if it _is_ for the greater good."

She heard Adrien chuckle, "Alright, I'll hold you to it."

"So…you're not mad?"

"Well, I figure Ladybug is mad enough for the both of us, considering you put yourself in the line of fire earlier…"

Sarah winced, "Okay, yes, that probably wasn't my brightest moment…but it was just _bubblegum_ , and you guys were one hero short…and I was wearing a wig!"

"You still could have been hurt, Sarah."

"Being pelted by gum wads would be more like massage therapy compared to Pollen's "bodyguard training", I'll have you know. If you guys ever reveal identities to each other, I dare you to take a session. I _dare_ you."

"…okay, maybe you have a point…anything that makes a person walk like a dysfunctional robot is probably something I would rather not endure…"

He and Marinette were perfect for each other in some of the most ridiculous ways, ugh.

"Ha-ha. Anyway, I'm a little tougher after all that, so I guess it's made me a little bolder. I'm not trying to freak you guys out, I know you don't want me getting in over my head…but when I see you guys in trouble, I can't just sit back if there's something I can actually do to help…"

"Yeah, I know…and thank you, for helping, Sarah…and good luck with Ladybug."

Sarah groaned, "…not only is she mad about the Akuma, she heard my cousin say I was pulling pranks on people too, so I have to explain _that_ somehow…ugh, anyway, what happened with you guys afterwards? Did you find Marinette and the other two okay?"

"Ah, yeah, I feel bad for running off on Marinette like I did…but she was completely understanding, so I think we're okay."

Sarah shook her head in amusement, "Well, keep trying with her. She can be quirky, but she really wants to be a good friend to you, trust me on this. Once you get past her shyness, she's a lot of fun to be around."

Her phone dinged as the aforementioned girl sent her yet another text, and she mentally added, _'A lot of fun, but also terrifying as h*ll when you p*ss her off…'_

"Thanks…and you should purrobably answer that."

Sarah whined. Then whined _louder_ when there was _another_ ding. (The part of her mind that _wasn't_ wallowing in dread was growling at Plagg for laughing.)

"We've been through this before, Sarah."

"And you know that I live for procrastination. It keeps me alive just a _little_ longer."

"…alright, think of it this way. Who is scarier, Ladybug or Pollen?"

"…Ladybug."

"You sure?"

"Yes, because unlike Ladybug, _Pollen_ can be appeased by random acts of cleaning, and right now I happen to be sitting among all the tools of the trade."

"…Sarah, what is it with you and broom closets?"

"Don't tell me you've never hidden in one before."

"I have. And unlike you, I happen to have a heightened sense of smell, so all I know is that they _reek_ of chemicals. It's probably not healthy to be in there."

"…that might explain why I feel a little light-headed."

" _Okay_ , Sarah, I think it's time for you to get out of there now."

"Fiiiiiine…I think I saw a bush outside."

"…well, I guess that's greener."

…

Once settled behind a non-toxic bush, Sarah finally checked her texts from Marinette.

* * *

 **Macaron Angel:** [Sarah…what. The. H*ll.

 **Macaron Angel:** [Alright, look, I'm pretty sure I know what you were trying to do with that "prank"…and while I'm not at all happy with your methods…I sort of appreciate what you were trying to do…it was…nice, being able to spend time with him like that…you know, until I had to run off on him to deal with that Akuma…funnily enough, he seems to think he ran off on ME, which is ridiculous, obviously. Anyway…I REALLY think you need to stop it with the crazy meddling, even if you WEREN'T the only one involved (if Alya hasn't told you yet, I just finished telling her I know she was in on it too), but…thanks. As for you picking a fight with an Akuma…we're still going to have a talk about that.

 **Macaron Angel:** [Also, stop hiding in broom closets. You're going to fumigate yourself on cleaning supplies doing that!]

 **Sarah:** [WHO TOLD YOU ABOUT THE BROOM CLOSETS?!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Alya

 **Macaron Angel:** [Please tell me you're not still hiding in there, that is NOT healthy!]

 **Sarah:** [I know, I know, someone else gave me this lecture a few minutes ago, so I found a "healthier" spot.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Good, whoever they are, keep listening to them.]

 **Sarah:** [LOL, I will remember you said that…]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Wait, who were you talking to?]

 **Sarah:** [Before you get onto me about running out to throw bread at a gumball dispenser, WHILE disguised so Hawkmoth wouldn't notice it was me again…I'll have you know that being pelted by gum cannot POSSIBLY compare to what Pollen puts me through, so…are you really THAT mad I got involved this time?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Don't think I didn't notice you dodging the question…and MAYBE you picked a LESS dangerous fight to stick your nose in…but I still don't want you to make a habit of it.]

 **Sarah:** [I know, I know…would you have known it was me if my cousin hadn't exposed me?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [You did a freakishly accurate portrayal of Chloe. I would have been terrified if that WASN'T you.]

 **Sarah:** […oh crap…I didn't even realize…I KNEW I should have gone with the red wig!]

 **Macaron Angel:** [That wasn't EXACTLY why, but…]

 **Sarah:** [Did the media catch any of it?]

 **Macaron Angel:** [Er…]

 **Sarah:** [Chloe must NEVER find out that was me. EVER.]

 **Macaron Angel:** [I'll…make sure Chat knows…]

 **Sarah:** [PLEASE AND THANK YOU]

* * *

If Chloe ever found out Sarah had been _impersonating_ her, even _accidentally_ , Sarah would _never_ hear the end of it!

…

When Chloe returned (just in time for Sarah's birthday, which was oddly sweet of her, even if she _did_ complain that her party was lame, _and_ do everything in her power to disrupt the slowly but surely advancing _Adrienette_ development...), she _did_ have a lot to say about the "mysterious blond figure", who the media heavily suspected of either being Honey Bee's civilian self, or just a very enthusiastic fan of hers. Sarah had to wonder if this was some sort of weird, sadistic punishment the universe had cooked up to remind her that she had no business trying to play hero…but at least Chloe didn't find out that her "fan" had been Sarah, and Sarah would continue to thank the universe, however sadistic it was, that she had been granted this one small mercy.

…

The day after her birthday, while there were still a couple days of vacation left, Sarah decided to pay Fu's Clinic a surprise visit. She'd recently found an interesting book on The Art of Chi Medicine, and wanted to ask him what he thought, since he'd been telling her a bit about his trade.

She hadn't expected to run into Nino on the way in, and he most _definitely_ had not been expecting to see her there either.

"Wh-what are _you_ doing here?" Nino gaped at her.

"Uh…to see Master Fu?" she blinked.

"You _know_ about Fu?" he seemed surprised.

"Marinette recommended him to me a while ago…" Sarah frowned, wondering why he was so surprised. It wasn't _that_ strange, was it?

"What? Marinette did?"

"Yeah, don't you know he's an old friend of her family?"

"He is?!"

"You didn't know?"

Maybe Marinette just hadn't thought to mention it to him. Despite knowing him for several years…and despite the fact he was her _best friend's_ _boyfriend_ …curious…

"Er, I guess not…" he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "So, uh, you're here for the, uh…"

Something about his behavior bugged her, so she smiled and replied with a question, "Were you here for the acupuncture treatment too?"

"Y-yeah! That!" Nino replied quickly, "Yup, just here for the acupuncture! Great stuff! Totally recommend it!"

"Funny, I didn't figure you as someone who was good with needles," she chuckled.

"Ha-ha, yeah, but, uh, he knows what he's doing, you know? I hardly felt a thing!" he told her.

"True, he is definitely good at what he does," she nodded, smiling.

"Well, uh, I better get going. See you at school!" he tipped his hat, and went on his way.

"Later, Nino!" she waved him off, maintaining a normal smile as best she could.

She saw him sigh in relief through the crack in the door, and she finally allowed a knowing smirk to cross her face. Nino was hiding something, something to do with Master Fu, which had absolutely nothing to do with his medical practices.

Since, if Nino had had any clue what Fu actually _did_ for a living, he would have known that Fu _didn't_ practice acupuncture.

So that raised the question…what could Nino _possibly_ be hiding…when usually he would tell her _everything_ , even when she didn't necessarily _want_ to hear it? He really wasn't one to keep secrets, unless it wasn't _his_ secret to tell…so…that likely meant that _Master_ _Fu_ had a secret…

But that was where she was stumped. What could Master Fu possibly be hiding? And why would he share a secret with someone so bad at keeping secrets? How did the two of them even meet?

Ugh, so many questions! The curiosity was going to kill her, she just knew it!

Pulling herself together with a quick shake and a squaring of her shoulders, she continued on her original quest to pay Master Fu a visit…with just a little ulterior motive mixed in.

…

If Fu was hiding something, then his poker face was of the highest caliber. He was naturally surprised to see her unannounced, nothing more. By some stroke of luck, he had some time before the next client, so she was able to talk with him about her book while he sipped his tea.

"...how often do you get teenage clients?" Sarah managed to slip in when the topics shifted far enough in her favor.

"Perhaps more than you might think."

"Hmm…and how many were thanks to Marinette?" she said, playfully teasing.

He considered it thoughtfully, "Hmm…you may be the first. I have not asked."

Sarah pouted a little at the lack of information, and shrugged, "Well, I guess I'm typically the only one in our class that really looks like she _needs_ therapy, so maybe I shouldn't be surprised."

"You should not be so hard on yourself, Mademoiselle."

" _Two_ people told me I was walking like a dysfunctional robot. _Two people_. _Nice_ people. And they _weren't_ joking," she deadpanned, but then she chuckled, "But I'm doing a lot better now, thanks to you."

"You are gradually building up endurance, strength, and balance through your "Bodyguard" training," Fu smiled knowingly, "Even if I did nothing, your gate would have grown more graceful in time. Walking like a "dysfunctional robot" was simply proof of your trials."

"I guess that's one way to put it," she let out a small laugh, "Oh, but didn't Marinette also recommend you to Nino? I thought I saw him leave here a bit ago."

"Nino?" Fu questioned.

"Lahiffe?" she tried, pretending to wonder if she was mistaken.

"Oh, yes, Monsieur Lahiffe. He was my client earlier," Fu nodded to himself, then turned to her, "I do not believe it was Marinette who recommended him, but I could be mistaken."

If Nino hadn't been so painfully obvious earlier, she would have been entirely convinced that nothing was amiss, "I see. They're good friends, so I figured it was because Marinette told him about you."

Fu chuckled, "I imagine when she finds out, she'll ask me to give him a discount."

That reminded Sarah of something, "…she said you owed her a favor, but I don't think she mentioned what it was…would you mind if I asked?"

"I asked a great favor of her when she was younger, and she helped me through a troubling time," he explained, "I am very grateful for that help."

"I see…" Sarah considered, wishing he would have said more, but knowing it wasn't her place to pry, "Well, I suppose I could _forget_ to mention Nino's patronage here to Marinette, but she'll probably hear about it from him eventually."

"That is generous of you," he replied, "And we shall see."

Sarah checked the time, and sighed. It was about time for his next appointment, and she didn't want to cause any trouble.

"I guess I should-"

She stopped as the natural lighting suddenly went dark. Surprised, she hurried over to the window to look out at the blackened sky. Seconds later, large lights, star shaped and crescent-moon shaped, softened the darkness. It was pretty, in a childish, unnatural sort of way, and definitely the work of an Akuma.

"Perhaps it would be wiser to stay a little longer," Fu suggested, revealing that he was now standing next to her.

Sarah sighed, wondering if she should follow his advice, or make the excuse that she needed to "guard" Chloe. She pulled out her phone to check the news. Apparently, this Akuma's theme was "night time", and he was knocking people out with music from an old-fashioned music box.

So, maybe not the most _violent_ Akuma, just a huge pain to deal with (hopefully his music wouldn't reach anyone in a moving vehicle...that was a scary thought). She probably wouldn't be much help even if she did run out into the fray. Maybe she could try advising Chloe to wear ear-plugs, but with such a theatrical entrance the Akuma _couldn't_ be missed, so Honey Bee was probably already out on the scene...and ear-plugs could result in a few other issues.

Unsure, Sarah pulled up the Ladyblog, and sighed at what appeared to be a tilted view of a rooftop and Alya's hand on the video feed. It was obvious that Foxy's illusion of herself had fallen victim to the magical lullaby (because Sarah knew for a FACT that Alya didn't start recording during Akuma attacks until her complex illusions were safely in place), and if Sarah turned up the volume she would probably hear snoring.

Great, now she had to rely on _other_ people to know what was going on...if anyone was still awake, anyway. She could try texting one of the heroes for better information, but they were probably _very_ busy...hopefully if anyone needed her help somehow, they would let her know...

She tried texting Sabrina, but all the girl could say was that the fight was nowhere near the hotel, which was a relief because the hotel wasn't all that far away from Fu's clinic, but it did nothing to help her sense of helplessness.

"You follow the heroes of Paris quite closely, do you not?"

Brought out of her thoughts, she quickly flashed Fu a smile, "Can't help it. I was once a Ladybug. You know, before I screwed up and revealed my identity to my entire class."

"Our fates often take some interesting turns, but in the end, you will find yourself where you are meant to be."

Sarah considered that for a moment, then chuckled, "So I was always destined to be an Akuma deterrent for the mayor's daughter?"

"Perhaps," he smiled.

Sarah laughed at that.

"I think I will make some more tea. Would you like some?"

"…sure, thank you," she told him.

She still wasn't overly fond of green tea, but she was starting to get used to it. Besides, there were only so many times she could turn the offer down without feeling bad about it.

He left her there by the window, and when all was quiet it suddenly occurred to her…she would probably never have a better chance to snoop-uh, briefly scan the area for clues! Well, okay, it was pretty much just plain old snooping, she could be honest.

She did scan around the room. The dim lighting made it a challenge, but fortunately her eyes had already adjusted, so it wasn't _too_ bad. She was left a tad disappointed though. Pretty much the only thing of interest was the old-fashioned record player that never played anything (Fu had told her prior that he kept it for sentimental reasons), and the little table it sat on.

The record player was well kept, though it was obviously an antique…wait…there was something inside the horn-like speaker…that…that looked _suspiciously_ like a teeny-tiny bedroom...perfectly sized for a little fairy, or a Kwami-...oh. _Oh_! That meant...so _that_ was the connection between Nino and Master Fu! They were both wielders of a Miraculous!

Further musings would have to wait, because she could hear the soft clinking of a moving tea tray, and she did _not_ want to be caught snooping!

…

It really didn't take long after that for Sarah to figure out that Fu was The Guardian. Out of the seven Kwamis she was aware of, there was only one she didn't know much about, and there was only one other known person involved in Miraculous affairs that could _possibly_ have a Kwami. After that, it was only a matter of voicing her "curiosity" to Marinette and Tikki about the "seventh Miraculous", acting as if it had only _just_ occurred to her that she knew nothing about it. Marinette saw no harm in admitting that the last Miraculous was in the possession of The Guardian.

As an added bonus, Sarah learned that the seventh Miraculous belonged to a _Turtle_ Kwami whose name was Wayzz. Tikki mentioned that he was a peaceful spirit, and that he loved long naps. (And did she recall Plagg saying something about Wayzz always talking about "balance" and "inner peace"? Master Fu talked about things like that _all the time_!)

To further support her suspicions, Sarah _casually_ asked Alya if she'd ever been to Master Fu's clinic. Alya was genuinely surprised to know that Sarah was one of his clients too, and, when asked, Alya claimed she'd heard about Fu through one of her mom's friends...which meant that she had _not_ heard about him from Marinette. And since Fu was not "apparently aware" of knowing any of Marinette's friends, clearly neither girl was aware that the other knew him, even though they were _best_ _friends_.

In light of this, when Alya returned the question, Sarah did not mention Marinette's involvement at all, and instead made it sound as if she had been offered a free session by the man himself after helping him transverse a stairway, and then coming to an arrangement later where she helped him with chores in return for bi-weekly healing treatments. Whatever Alya thought about her story, she didn't voice any suspicion, and the fact that she changed the subject, before Sarah had to, only further implied that Sarah was right.

And jarring as it was, it made sense that Master Fu was The Guardian. Marinette held high respect for The Guardian, but also a great deal of frustration, at least when it came to Chloe, and she displayed the same sort of attitude when it came to Fu. It also explained why Nino would have been so startled to see her near Fu, why he had been privy to whatever had pushed him to lie, and why he had known so little of Fu's business that his resulting lies had been so pitifully flimsy.

Sarah had to think about it for a while, to decide how she felt about this information. This meant that it was Master Fu who had cornered her into baby-sitting Chloe (and who had given Chloe the Miraculous in the first place), and then had so easily feigned ignorance to his being the cause of her suffering. However…she wasn't really mad about Chloe anymore. Frustrating as she was, Sarah had grown fond of the bratty heiress. She was also beginning to take pride in being Pollen's pupil, something she never would have experience otherwise.

As for Fu himself…she was fond of him now too, and it made her a little sad that he had hidden such a big secret from her so easily, but she understood why he hadn't told her. It was possible that he knew by now that she'd discovered the identities of the other five heroes, but that wasn't reason enough to expose his own identity. He alone was responsible for the placement of the Kwami, and that was not a position to be taken lightly.

So, in the end, she wasn't upset with Fu. She was happy for his influence in her life, and grateful for all the things she'd learned because of him.

And she really hoped he would one day tell her the truth…and _maybe_ she would pretend she hadn't already known. _Maybe_.

...

Something had changed by the time classes resumed. A good change, and a bad one. The good news was that Marinette and Adrien were getting along better and better with each passing day, and it was absolutely wonderful!

The bad news was that Chloe didn't like this. Not at all.

Sarah did everything she could think of to stop her, or at _least_ slow her down, but Chloe was seriously out to get Marinette, and it appeared that Lady Luck's good fortune was not in the cards that week. By the end of it, anyone could tell that Marinette's patience had run thin, and that she really needed a weekend _away_ from the bratty bully.

Of course, generous as Hawkmoth was, he _had_ to send an Akuma to celebrate the arrival of Saturday. Although this may have seemed like a brilliant idea to him, Marinette was very much _not_ amused.

…

In hindsight, it wasn't exactly the worst thing Chloe had ever done. Sure, Honey Bee was late to arrive on the scene (which actually wasn't her fault, she'd been honest-to-goodness studying and had missed the first few notifications on her phone), and sure, her ill-timed tauntings managed to get the entire team momentarily glued together (and glue was _such_ a deviation from sticky gum, nice _creativity_ , Hawkmoth), and _maybe_ she shouldn't have flailed around to the point of bumping into Ladybug, and thereby accidentally knocking a _very_ _important_ polka dotted item right out of the heroine's hands, but…it was the sort of situation that, on a normal day, wouldn't have left Ladybug _quite_ so _severely_ p*ssed off.

And then, when Bee tried to shift the blame instead of apologizing after the situation was safely dealt with, Ladybug went on to provide a clear example of why secrets and lies were such a hazard…how, in the heat of the moment, the metaphoric dust stirs, uncovering the truth beneath.

"SHUT _UP_ , CHLOE! No one wants to hear your excuses!"

In the stunned silence that followed, it slowly dawned on Ladybug that she had used the wrong name. The wrong name...for the right person.

"Uh, er, I mean…s-sorry, I was thinking of someone else, um…" Ladybug scrambled, desperate to cover up her mistake.

"H-how did you find out?" Chat's eyes were wide.

"F-find out wha-…wait, _what_?!" Ladybug did a double-take, as did everyone else, "Did _you_ know?!"

"Uh…" Chat blanched.

"Okay, no, hold up, rewind, how did _you_ know she was Chloe?" Blue directed back at Ladybug.

"Uh…huh?!" again Ladybug flipped from uneasy to shocked.

"Wait, _you_ knew it too?!" Foxy gaped at Blue in disbelief.

"What?! NO! Uh… _sh*t_ …" Blue winced.

"Did _everyone_ know she was Chloe?!" Ladybug exclaimed. When everyone hesitated to answer, looking to each other, Ladybug's frustration mounted, "God, I _knew_ this was a bad idea, I knew it! All that damage control, and she _still_ can't keep her identity a secret!"

Bee looked stricken, but Ladybug was distracted by her earring, which was warning her that time was running out, "D*mn it, I don't have time for this! We're going to talk about this later!"

"Ladybug!" Chat called out as she swung away.

"…she lied to me…" Bee's whisper cut through the air like a knife, causing the others to look at her in shock as her expression contorted with hurt and anger, "She _lied_ to me!"

"Wait, that can't be why!" Chat tried to reason.

"Oh, and how would _you_ know?!" Bee snapped, furious, "Because she told _you_ too?! Why am I even surprised?!"

"That can't be right…" Foxy whispered, stricken.

"N-no! She wouldn't do that!" Blue blurted. All eyes landed on him, minds whirling. Suddenly in the hot seat, he shrank back, "Uh…who are we talking about?"

Then Bee laughed, and it was as hollow as she felt, "She even got to _you two_ …I bet you all had a good long laugh about it, didn't you?! You probably all wish _Sarah_ was Honey Bee instead of me, right?! Too bad she's just a lousy _fake_! She'll never be at _my_ level! The joke is on _you_ losers!"

Then she took off, ignoring Chat calling for her to come back. By the time he ran after her, she had already vanished. If not for an ill-timed call from Nathalie, he likely would have continued to hunt for her, maybe even going straight to her balcony in the hopes of finding her there so he could talk things out with her.

Much later, Chloe and Sarah would both realize they had missed several calls from Adrien, and Sarah would read through the belated warning texts from her friends, left to wonder in vain what might have happened if she had received them sooner…

…

When Bee walked in from the balcony, Sabrina and Sarah both knew something was wrong. Her usual poise was gone. She looked lost…broken. And on closer inspection, it looked like she had been crying too.

"Chloe?" Sabrina moved toward her uncertainly.

Pulling out of her daze, Bee's reddened azure eyes passed Sabrina and locked on Sarah. Her face suddenly contorted into a snarl.

"GET OUT!"

To say Sarah was shocked was an understatement, "C-Chloe?"

"I SAID GET OUT! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN!"

Sarah was completely shaken by the raw hurt in Bee's voice, "Wha-what are you talking abou-?"

"YOU TOLD THEM! _ALL_ OF THEM! YOU'VE BEEN LYING TO ME ALL THIS TIME, YOU BACK-STABBER!"

The horrifying understanding finally clicked into place, and Sarah opened her mouth to deny it...but...what could she say? That it wasn't true? It _wasn't_ true, she hadn't told _any_ of them...but what other explanation was there unless she exposed the secret identities of all her friends? And...in the end...she really _had_ been lying to Chloe...

Bee was fighting it, but the tears showed anyway as she snarled at Sarah, "JUST GET OUT!"

And so, Sarah ran. She didn't even know where she was running to, but she wanted away from there. The elevator was instantly rejected, so she took the stairs, rushing down maybe three flights before she broke down.

Pretty much no one ever used the stairs, so no one saw her there, curled up on a step against the wall, sobbing into her knees. The walls were thick, so no one heard her either.

It hurt.

She'd never expected this. When everything had begun, she wouldn't have cared what Chloe thought of her. The delicate lie had been for Adrien's benefit, and beyond that to help Sarah do as the Guardian had asked, again for Adrien's sake as well as for the sake of helping The Cause. She hadn't really thought about it beyond that.

Now...now she regretted it. The lie was broken, cracked open just enough for Chloe to see that Sarah had been lying to her, and now she thought Sarah had betrayed her...and Sarah could say nothing to defend herself. Sarah _had_ lied; had made Chloe believe her secret was still a secret. And she couldn't tell Chloe _why_ she had done it.

Chloe would never forgive her, and that hurt so much more than Sarah ever could have imagined. Chloe was _hurt_ because of her...and she could do nothing to fix it. She _wanted_ to fix it, she _needed_ to fix it, but she _couldn't_.

It was almost funny. Chloe shouldn't have cared. Sarah shouldn't have cared if Chloe cared. Not all that long ago they _wouldn't_ have cared. Yet, now, here they were. Miserable. Friends without the name, no longer even that, because of a tangled web no one could unravel.

Chloe would never believe in her again.

Alone, lost, suffocating in her suffering, Sarah failed to see what came for her. She never saw a small, dark _something_ vanish into her favorite bracelet, tainting it with its malice. For the second time, the mood-stone became the host for an Akuma.

"Hello, Siren, it seems your friend won't listen to reason," Hawkmoth spoke in a tone that could be mistaken as sympathetic, "But I can give you the power to make her believe in you again."

Something itched at the back of her mind, but the offer called to her sweetly. She listened.

"She'll trust you again. You'll have her friendship again."

She wanted that; she really, _really_ wanted that.

"She won't be hurt anymore."

The pain in Chloe's eyes haunted her. The echo of her screams still _tore_ at her.

"With the power I'm offering you, no one will ever have to be sad again," he promised, "Ladybug and Chat Noir would be _happy_ to give you their Miraculouses."

She felt conflicted in her heart. Something about this was _wrong_...

"I can't give you this power for free, I'm afraid," he said, again with false sympathy, "But how else could you ever make your friend happy again?"

Despair. How else could she ever convince Chloe to look her in the eye? How else could she _possibly_ fix what she had broken?

"Give me what I want, Siren, and I will give you the power to save your friendship," he promised, "She'll never be hurt again."

"...you'll let me keep the power forever?" she asked, her will to resist failing her.

"As long as you don't let anyone stop you, and as long as you give me what I want, I would be happy to let you keep your power for as long as you desire," he told her.

Tempting. Very tempting.

"Will you accept my offer, and save your friend from her suffering?"

Chloe was hurting, and it was her fault. But she had the chance to stop it.

"...yes, Hawkmoth," she caved, closing her eyes in resignation.

It was the beginning of the end.

…

Chapter End

* * *

Whoops.

Yes, I believe it's fully possible for someone to be Akumatized more than once, and in a different guise. It's all about their mental state, and people change, so why wouldn't their potential Akuma form change as well? I mean, it would make sense for Vulpina to happen again if Lila remained hooked on that same obsessive anger towards Ladybug (highly possible), but if she became fixated with another sort of upset that an alter-ego like Vulpina would be largely unhelpful in fixing she would naturally want to become a more useful alter-ego, right?

So, my argument: Sarah, at one point, wished she could be anyone else because her own self was "boring", but by this point she has lost that fixation and it has nothing to do with her current mental state. Now, however, she just wishes that she could somehow convince Chloe that she didn't betray her...and Hawkmoth has the perfect way to accommodate that. Whoops. (As for Akumatize-attempt #2, I'll leave it up to your imagination what sort of Akuma Hawkmoth was going for, lol.)

Also, I totally believe Pollen should like peppers. Bee symbolism = agriculture, so I figured something fresh from a garden would be best...and then, why not stick even closer to symbolism by going with a plant harvest that bites back? ;P

Cayenne peppers just seemed like good specific for a favorite due to the fact it is commonly used, and its heat is nothing to laugh at, lol. I considered Ghost peppers, since they were considered the hottest pepper back in 2007 and are fairly well known (plus they sound cool, lol), but it would probably bee safer for Chloe's hands to avoid that route, lol. (Handle hot peppers with care! Use gloves, handle as little as possible, wash your hands thoroughly with COLD water, AND FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE DON'T GET THAT STUFF NEAR YOUR EYES!)

My jaw dropped when, while first drafting up a timeline, I realized that October 6th was the date for Sarah's first near-akumatization, AND the day Chloe finally sort-of apologized for running her mouth the following year. Just a fun coincidence I was careful not to edit out in the final version, lol! (I love it when that happens!)

Yes, I used a timeline for this, I don't just randomly throw out dates, lol…and it's not much, but I'll share it as a bonus after the end of the sequel, since I'm not about to spoil any of you on future events. ;P

Also, I DID NOT LIE LAST CHAPTER. Fu did NOT blow his cover; NINO did. ;P

Okay, sooooooo~...the next chapter is gonna hurt…a lot...so buckle your seat-belts, or run while you still can, kiddos!

Warning: physical violence and bodily harm past this point. You have been warned.

* * *

...alright, I have a little challenge for all of you who are reading this, right now...if you enjoyed this chapter, comment with a smiley face. That is all. Smiles make me happy. I like to know that people are smiling...so if you liked this nonsense, please give me smiles. ^_^


	9. The Price of Magic

THANK YOU SO MUCH GUEST COMMENTER FOR YOUR KIND WORDS! T^T

AND THANK YOU SEEKERSWIZARD!

TimPlazasta, please continue being awesome, I ADORE your comments! ^o^

* * *

Chapter 9: The Price of Magic

The Siren's first target was Chloe. She made her way easily with a simple, "You didn't see me" to the few souls whose paths happened to cross hers on the way. They were suddenly convinced they hadn't seen her pass them, and continued on as if nothing was wrong.

When she walked back into the room, Chloe and Sabrina whipped around in surprise. Chloe had been crying, but now she was on red alert. Siren silently noted Chloe's mussed hair, and the absent hair comb that should have been in it. She recalled Nino mentioning that a Kwami would return to it's Miraculous if it was taken away, so she suspected that Pollen wouldn't be an issue for the time being.

Not that a Kwami could resist her power anyway. No one with their hearing intact stood a chance against her.

"You have nothing to fear from me," Siren spoke before either of the girls could make a move, and they immediately calmed as The Siren's power took effect, "Sarah never meant to hurt you, Chloe. She had a good reason not to tell you. You don't have to know why. It's good enough to know that she would never hurt you. You don't have to feel sad. You forgive her, don't you?"

"I suppose I can forgive her," Chloe said haughtily, any sign of distress completely gone.

"Now, you want to stay here and be good," Siren told them, "There's no reason for anyone to warn anyone else about me or my powers. You don't _want_ to warn anyone."

The girls nodded, completely at ease. Satisfied, Siren then left them, and a certain voice in her head reminded her that it was time to keep her end of the bargain.

...

The Siren was clever. Calling herself "Princess", she announced that anyone she touched would become her faithful servants, and as everyone she then touched had heard this, they immediately began to worship her as if she were a goddess. Thus, her adversaries would be easily caught unaware, when they believed she was only a threat if she could touch them.

She claimed the Place du Carrousel as hers, standing at the center of the square amidst her large crowd of loyal minions. It might have seemed like an odd move, not to mention rude as her crowd was trampling the carefully cultivated circle of greenery with no regard for the law, but it was exactly what she needed. The only high place close enough for an aerial assault from the heroes was the Arc du Carrousel, which had a clear visual all around it. She would see the heroes coming easily.

Plus, this was close enough to all their homes that she wouldn't have to wait long for their arrival. With news cameras already rolling nearby she would not be waiting long at all.

Her minions kept look-out for signs, some sent at a distance to act as scouts. They would not engage the heroes without her asking, and they would only contact her appointed right-hand via their cellphone if the heroes were to be seen.

The trap was set, and the heroes would fall.

...

Ladybug and Chat Noir made their appearance, teasing her from the apparent safety of the Arc du Carrousel, just as expected. The taunts and challenges thrown to her only made her smile.

"There's _no_ harm in facing me _honestly_ , heroes of Paris!" The Siren called out, "We should talk! No tricks! Just a lovely conversation! Wouldn't that be nice?!"

Any ears were hers immediately. The heroes before her _believed_ every word she said, and they both visibly relaxed. Why should they try to trick, attack, or flee her now?

...

Four heroes soon stood before her, and her minions parted to let them in closer.

"You wouldn't lie to me. This is really all of you, right?" one last test fell from the Siren's lips.

Foxy's illusions would not come between her and her goal.

...

All too soon, it was clear that only Honey Bee was absent, and that was perfectly fine.

"You don't need to fight me. I'm not causing any trouble. I'm not stealing any Miraculouses. It's safe for Peacock Blue and Foxy Rouge to go home," The Siren promised, "But Ladybug and Chat Noir, you two both need to speak with me, privately. It's very important, so follow me."

Ladybug and Chat Noir nodded, while Peacock Blue and Foxy Rouge left without hesitation. Leaving her minions behind with a simple dismissal, she led the duo to a secluded alleyway.

"Everything is going to be fine, you can trust me," she told them, walking up to where they stood together, facing her, "You want to look away from each other. You definitely don't want to look at each other."

And suddenly, Ladybug and Chat Noir turned their backs to each other completely, as if there was nothing at all wrong with the gesture.

"You want to give me your Miraculouses," she told them, "You know I'll keep them safe for you. Everything will be fine if you place them in my hands."

Siren closed her eyes as they began to take off their Miraculouses. Flashes of light filled the alleyway, but no identities were revealed to anyone. Hands held out within reach of both of them, she waited patiently with her eyes closed as she felt the small jewelry pieces being placed in each of her hands. Tikki and Plagg's voices briefly cried out in horror before being cut off by the transfer of ownership. Then there was stark silence.

"Why don't you look at them?" Hawkmoth questioned, suspicious.

"You two want to go home now, but you still don't want to look at each other," she ignored the question, "You don't want to reveal your secret identities to each other. Your civilian identities should always be protected."

She waited as the two left her, then looked down at her hands, so that Hawkmoth could see her bounty. Red and black spotted earrings, and a black ring with a green paw-print. They were the genuine articles, no doubt.

"I saw no point in revealing them to you, Hawkmoth. And I have what you want, is that not enough?" she questioned.

"...very well," Hawkmoth said, "Now-"

"Oh, I almost forgot!" she gasped in sudden realization, "I still need to get my yo-yo back from that kleptomaniac!"

Hawkmoth blinked, then recovered, "Hurry and finish your business. I need those Miraculouses!"

"Yes, I will hurry!" she promised, now making her way toward Marinette's house.

...

All too soon, The Siren casually climbed up through the trapdoor of Marinette's room. Marinette looked over in surprise, but The Siren smiled.

"You have something you want to give me, Marinette," Siren told her.

"...what did I want to give you?" Marinette frowned in serious thought.

"What you stole from Sarah, you want to give to me," Siren informed her.

"Oh, of course! I'll get it for you!" Marinette hurried to dig something out of her storage chest.

The Siren closed her eyes.

"Why are you closing your eyes, Siren?" Hawkmoth growled.

"It's private, Hawkmoth. Is there a problem?" Siren inquired.

"...make it quick," Hawkmoth warned.

"Here, I put it in a bag for you," Marinette said, standing close to The Siren.

The Siren reached out, and the handles of the bag were placed in her hands. Immediately she felt around the interior of the bag.

"Hmm...oh dear, this won't do! It's not in here! Marinette, I need to see your purse."

"Oh, here," Marinette handed her purse over.

The Siren dropped the first bag, and took the smaller one instead, opening it to examine the contents blindly, "Yes! Here we are! Shame, Marinette, you really thought this belonged to you, didn't you? I'm sorry, but I need this more than you do. You forgive me, right?"

"Yes, I forgive you," Marinette agreed.

"Here, you can have your bag back now. Now I have what is mine, and you have what is yours. Everything is fine now."

…

As soon as The Siren left Marinette's room, Hawkmoth spoke to her again, "Now that you've finished your business-"

"Wait! I want to tell my friend about my _astounding_ success! The world deserves to know how I defeated Ladybug and Chat Noir!" she declared, walking past where Sabine and Tom sat entranced on their living-room couch.

"That can _wait_ till aft-"

"No, it must be now!" she insisted, "Timing is everything!"

Hawkmoth growled, "If you don't do as I say-"

"You'll take my powers away? What a shame, then I can't deliver the Miraculouses to you!" she mock-gasped.

"...fine, hurry up," he seethed.

"Will do!" she promised, heading toward Alya's home.

...

Once Siren was finished gushing to a very surprised Alya, and had Alya "fix" something she refused to let Hawkmoth see, Hawkmoth directed her to his Lair.

Hawkmoth silently lamented the fact that The Siren was not an Akuma with the ability of flight, as Siren was quite a distance away. Fortunately, cab-fair was free when one could convince the driver he'd already been paid.

Soon enough, Siren entered the specified building, rode up an elevator to the top, and walked in through the door Hawkmoth specified. The large room would have been completely dark if not for the moonlight streaming in through a grand, circular window. Closing the door behind her, Siren waltzed into the center of the room, observing the small white butterflies flitting around curiously.

"Leave the Miraculouses there on the pedestal," Hawkmoth instructed, his voice still in her mind, and nowhere in the room.

Her eyes flitted to the simple, elegant stand. It was off to the side, mostly hidden in shadow, but despite the darkness is was clear that it was the only other _anything_ in the room, and her eyes then narrowed.

" _What_? I come all the way here, and you won't even let me see your face?" she demanded, clearly irritated as she looked around for a sign that he might yet appear, "How am I supposed to trust that you won't take my powers away after I do? I want _proof_ that you won't back out of your word, Hawkmoth. I've delivered as promised, your Miraculouses are _right_ _here_ , but before I hand them over I need to know that your promises aren't a farce."

She waited, tense, eyes still darting around the dark room with growing anxiety. Then, suddenly, the Akuma slipped out of her bracelet. The Siren immediately washed away, leaving behind a very confused Sarah. It had still been daylight out last she remembered, and she definitely had no idea where she was, nor how she had gotten there.

She heard the distinct squeaking of a door opening and closing, and just as swiftly being locked with a resounding _click_.

"You did well, Mademoiselle," an unfamiliar voice called out to her, and a man in a strange purple suit stepped out into the light, approaching her.

"Wh-who are you?!" she backed away, clutching her hands to her chest, only to notice a small, piercing pain in her left palm.

She opened her fist to see Ladybug's earrings and Chat Noir's ring. Realization struck quickly, hitting her _hard_.

"No... _NO_!" she screamed, looking at the man in horror, "WHAT DID YOU MAKE ME DO?!"

With the butterfly symbol at his throat, and the little white butterflies flitting around him, she had no doubt now as to who he was.

The villain smirked, "I simply made you an offer. It was you who accepted the terms."

"No..." she looked about wildly for an escape.

She saw the door, and ran for it, only to find it _was_ locked. Hawkmoth laughed at the futile action, strolling casually after her.

"I'll gladly open the door for you, Mademoiselle," he promised, holding out his free hand to her, "You need only hand over the Miraculouses."

She gave up on the door (she could pick locks, sure, but not fast enough), edging along the wall and keeping as much distance between herself and the creep in a butterfly suit as humanly possible, "H-hey, um, now that we're talking, how about you tell me why you even want these things?"

"It would be best not to stall, I am not a patient man," he warned coolly.

"Come on, aren't you _dying_ to tell someone about your _amazing_ plot?" she tried, offering her most convincing smile, "I bet it's something _really_ interesting!"

"It is pointless to ask, I have no wish to indulge you," his tone and expression grew more and more dangerous, "Hand over the Miraculouses, before I take them from you myself."

She held them just a little tighter in her fist, then it finally dawned on her that she could simply wield them herself. Plagg's ring would be the better option, because it was easier to put on, and she could just Cataclysm through the door and make her escape.

However, as she opened her hand to look at the jewelry, she noticed a rather significant detail. There was a familiar inscription on the backs of the earrings. Marinette's beautifully styled "M" was painted in gleaming gold against the silvery metal. It was such a tiny detail that it was barely even visible in the dark room, but so familiar she couldn't help but notice.

She had Dopplebug's earrings, not Ladybug's! She wasn't sure how that was even possible, but it gave her hope that maybe be she _hadn't_ completely screwed up.

Only, that also raised the question...was Chat Noir's ring a fake as well? If she tested it, and it was fake, Hawkmoth would realize it, and if there was some sort of brilliant plot at play she could risk ruining it. Or maybe she was over-thinking it, and Ladybug had merely pulled a fast one on her Akuma-self. She had no idea.

Still, she hesitated to don the ring. And now that she thought about it, she realized she didn't even know if there _was_ an issue with magical compatibility or not! She also realized that the moment she tried to pull anything Hawkmoth would attack, and she wasn't so sure she could deflect him mid-transformation. Despite her training with Chloe, she was _not_ ready to take on a full grown, evil and dangerous man barehanded! And she didn't know _how_ to use a baton, much less a magical one, even if she _did_ manage to transform!

Momentarily giving up on the Miraculouses, she hurriedly patted her right pocket with her free hand, aware that it was quite a bit _heavier_ than it should have been. A phone, but _not hers_ , and another, more familiar item.

She'd know that accursed round object anywhere. Why the heck did she have her yo-yo? Had she taken it back from Marinette while Akumatized? And why was there an unfamiliar phone in her pocket? Had she stolen that too? Oh God, she was now officially worse than Marinette. She didn't even know _whose_ phone she'd stolen!

But she had her yo-yo! Granted, she only knew two useful maneuvers with it, and she hadn't practiced in _way_ too long, but at least it was _something_ she could use to keep Hawkmoth at bay. She could _try_ to transform, and use her yo-yo "shield" technique to deter his approach!

Making sure there was enough space between her and Hawkmoth, she quickly stuck both her hands into her pocket, slipping the ring on one finger, and the loop of her yo-yo on the finger next to it. By the time Hawkmoth was lunging after her, knowing she was trying something (especially after seeing the flash of light that appeared when she "claimed" the ring), she was throwing out her yo-yo in a quick "STRIKE!" that she miraculously remembered _not_ to announce.

It didn't hit him, and it hit her on the return (that was going to leave a _big_ bruise, ouch), but it did cause him to step back, and she scurried away for more breathing room, hurriedly making sure her yo-yo was wound up again properly.

"So, you think you can use my power?" Plagg's voice made her jump.

"Any advice?!" she asked quickly, still moving to keep space between her and Hawkmoth, who considered the yo-yo with narrowed eyes as he kept after her.

"Idiot, don't wear your _toy_ on your _Cataclysm_ hand," Plagg made a face.

"Uh...can I switch which hand I do that with?" Sarah winced.

"No."

"But I can't use my yo-yo at _all_ with my left!" Sarah complained.

"Drop it then."

"Ugh, fine, I'll switch for the baton, that I have _no_ clue how to use, after the transformation ends, okay? Anything else?"

"Keep stalling, and hope Ladybug is fast," Plagg shrugged, but he was grinning.

So apparently, he knew the earrings were fake. How? She would have to ask later.

"Alright! Plagg, transform me!" Sarah said the words.

The magic coursing around her was jarring, but she saw Hawkmoth make his move. She threw out her yo-yo, spinning it to act as a shield just as he came upon her. It held him back, and she kept scrambling to keep the distance as she waited for the transformation to finish.

When it ended, she felt a small rush of confidence, and quickly reached back with her free hand to grab the baton on her back.

"Looks like I'm a _CopyCat_ this time," she grinned at Hawkmoth, forcing more bravo than she truly felt, "Usually I'm a _Dopplebug_ , but this should be fun!"

Suddenly, ghostly white butterflies were swarming her face, startling her into stumbling back and lifting her arms to cover her face. Taking advantage of this, Hawkmoth lunged toward her and thrust the Butterfly's Cane in the path of the still swinging string of her yo-yo, causing it to immediately became a hopeless tangle around it.

Not only was her yo-yo rendered useless, it was stuck in the enemy's grasp, and her hand was still caught up in the other end. One strong yank, and she was sent tumbling to the ground. The baton flew uselessly from her hand as she fell, leaving her weaponless and exposed. Before she could react, she found herself pinned against the floor, the head of the cane pressing painfully just below her collarbone.

Her hands went to grasp it, but she wasn't strong enough to make it budge, even if he was only holding onto it with one hand, as the other went for the yo-yo string.

She realized what he was doing too late, and watched in horror as her hand was yanked toward him. The hand Plagg's ring was on. She struggled, but Hawkmoth was far stronger, and her arm was already fully extended, leaving her even less muscle to work with than she would have if her arm was still bent. Her flailing legs failing to hit their mark. She only had one option left.

"CATACLYSM!" she cried out.

The yo-yo disintegrated into nothing, freeing her hand so she could pull it safely away from Hawkmoth's grasp. She'd bought more time, but at the cost of two of her weapons, and the third one beyond her grasp would vanish in a matter of minutes. And with her being unable to make a mad dash across the room to grab that random stand in the room that, for all she knew, was bolted to the floor, her artillery was officially down to zip.

"Enough of this foolishness!" Hawkmoth snarled.

She no longer saw a point in wearing the costume, and just wished she wasn't alone. Apparently that was enough for Plagg, because suddenly he ended the transformation and zipped out of the ring to flop pathetically onto the nearby ground.

"I need Camembert..." he moaned pathetically.

"Plagg!" she cried out to him, "Plagg, I'm so sorry! I-"

Then she watched in shock as Plagg _laughed_.

" _Oh_ , she got you _good_!" Plagg sneered at Hawkmoth, "You never questioned why she closed her eyes, _idiot_!"

Hawkmoth's eyes narrowed in suspicion, "What are you saying?"

"Closed my eyes?" Sarah blinked, confused.

"Go ahead! Give him the earrings! I wanna see the _look_ on his _face_!" Plagg grinned at her.

Deciding to give it a shot, Sarah swapped the ring for the earrings in her pocket, and with a trembling hand offered the earrings to Hawkmoth.

He snatched them quickly, eying her and the Kwami in suspicion, barely glancing at the items in his hand. However, suddenly the man snarled and hurled the earrings across the room.

"HOW?!" he demanded, applying pressure to the cane on her chest, causing her to cry out.

"I DON'T KNOW!" Sarah wailed, struggling with all her might to push the cane away from her and failing miserably, "I DON'T REMEMBER ANYTHING!"

"You knew they were fake!" Hawkmoth snarled.

"They're mine! Of course, I'd know!" Sarah whimpered, "I commissioned them so I could pretend to be Ladybug!"

"Where is the real Ladybug Miraculous?!" he demanded.

"I DON'T KNOW!" she cried out again, tears of fear and pain in her eyes, "You _Akumatized_ me! I don't remember anything!"

Hawkmoth growled, but then straightened, and spoke in a more controlled his tone, "No matter. You've brought me the Black Cat Miraculous at least. Now hand it over."

Sarah glanced over at Plagg, terrified.

"Well? Give it to him and get it over with," Plagg told her, as if it didn't concern him in the least.

She gaped at him, "Wh-what?!"

"Are you deaf?" Plagg asked.

"Are you out of your mind?!" she demanded, "I can't just hand you over to him! I won't!"

"Look, you give him the ring, and he won't want to waste time on you anymore," Plagg rolled his eyes at her, "What part of that don't you get?"

"I WON'T ABANDON YOU!" she yelled at him, terrified and furious.

Plagg merely blinked, as if completely unaffected by her declaration, "As long as Tikki doesn't fall into his hands, I don't care. You did good, Meddler."

Sarah broke down in tears, "No...Plagg, just take the ring! You're more important!"

"Bleh, stop it with the _theatrics_!" Plagg gaged, "And I can't touch a Miraculous anyway. So, stop whining, and give this loser the ring."

Sarah just sobbed, shaking her head, only to cry out again when Hawkmoth applied more pressure again, twisting it against her chest so that it hurt even more than before.

"You should listen to the Kwami," Hawkmoth warned, "Hand it over now, and I'll let you leave with your life."

Sarah looked up into the cold, pale blue eyes of Hawkmoth, and though she shook, there was a small determination left in her as she softly spoke.

"...I'm not leaving without my friend, Hawkmoth," she promised, removing one hand from her hold on the cane to clench the fabric of her pocket, as if that would protect it better.

Not only would Plagg's power be terrible in the wrong hands, and not only did that power belong to Adrien, her friend, and not only would handing Plagg over mean Hawkmoth had won half the battle...Plagg was precious to her. He was obnoxious, rude, selfish, and troublesome without reprieve...but the mere thought of letting him be taken away was more than she could bear. To let Hawkmoth's cruel hands touch him...she would never let that happen!

"I gave you a chance," Hawkmoth growled.

"Please... _why_ are you doing this?" Sarah pleaded.

"That is none of your concern."

His foot came down on her, and while she was winded he drew the cane back, ready to strike her. She threw her hands up to shield herself, bracing herself for the blow as best she could. Plagg managed to fly up in Hawkmoth's face, fangs bared, but he was too weak to be fast enough, and Hawkmoth swatted him away.

"PLAGG!" Sarah cried out, watching the Kwami being flung back to the floor, and cried out again as Hawkmoth raised the cane with renewed focus.

Glass shattered over them, halting the strike midway.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!"

The yellow and black figure, falling in through the window she had broken, flung her weapon at Hawkmoth. He stumbled back, barely deflecting it in time with his cane.

Sarah tried to scramble away, wincing as she cut herself on glass shards, but Hawkmoth managed to deflect a follow-up strike from one of Peacock Blue's feathers while lunging after her. He caught her arm, and yanked her back into a choke-hold just as Honey Bee and Peacock Blue landed before them.

"Bee! Catch!" Sarah strained, immediately pulling out and throwing Plagg's ring.

"NO!" Hawkmoth cried out in dismay, but he did not release Sarah.

Bee, though startled, caught the ring. Its true colors showed, as Plagg had been called back inside the ring when it was thrown away.

"Don't let him get it!" Sarah begged, only to find Hawkmoth tighten his grip on her throat right after.

"Let her go!" Bee and Blue demanded in unison.

"The girl, or the ring, make your choice," Hawkmoth warned.

Sarah was clawing desperately at the arm that was cutting off her air-supply, and shook her head as much as she was able since she couldn't make words come out. Though he wasn't _quite_ choking her enough to _completely_ deprive her of oxygen. Yet.

Peacock Blue stood firm, trying to look intimidating, but the terror was clear in his eyes as they searched desperately for a weakness in Hawkmoth's defense. Honey Bee, however, was snarling.

The Queen clearly did _not_ take ultimatums from creeps in butterfly suits.

"The moment you hurt her, it's over," Bee spat, tucking the ring safely away into the collar of her suit, "You can't use that against us!"

"What?!" Blue gasped, staring at Bee in shock.

"So, you would sacrifice this civilian for the sake of power?" Hawkmoth baited.

"No!" Blue looked panicked, "Bee, _shut up_!"

"No, _you_ shut up!" Bee snapped, "We're not letting him have the ring!"

"But we can't let him hurt her!" Blue snapped right back.

"It won't matter even _if_ we hand over the ring because he's _lying_ ," Bee retorted, "He _knows_ we'll attack the moment she's free, so there's no _way_ he'll do it!"

"Well then, what are you waiting for?" the man tested, allowing Sarah to suck in a much-needed breath so that she gasped and coughed pathetically, "Go on and take the Miraculous, and leave her here to suffer the consequences."

Sarah was shaking, and had tears slipping past tightly shut eyes. She looked as terrified as she felt, fearing that at any moment the horrible man would snap her neck.

She almost couldn't say it, and not just because Hawkmoth tightened his grip again, but she managed a quiet squeak, "Go!"

" _No_! We're not leaving you, Sarah!" Blue looked stricken.

"You stay if you want," Bee sneered, "I'm taking the Miraculous where he can't get his _disgusting_ hands on it!"

"Stop it, Bee!" Blue yelled at her, "I'm not going to let you get her killed!"

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't!" Bee tested him, "She's just a little liar! Why should _I_ care what happens to her?!"

Sarah felt new, hot tears spring from her eyes. Chloe hated her. Chloe _genuinely_ hated her, and it hurt. It hurt, and she couldn't do anything to fix it.

"You don't know anything about her!" Blue yelled at her, "And I don't care what you say, I'm not going to let you do this to her!"

"I know _plenty_ about her, as _everyone_ obviously knows now!" Bee snapped, and Blue flinched, "She betrayed my trust, _lied_ to me, and I will never forget that!"

Sarah flinched repeatedly throughout the statement.

"You're stalling," Hawkmoth said.

Bee shot a glare at him, snarling, "HOW _DARE_ YOU?!"

"You care about her," Hawkmoth said smoothly, "You don't want to see her hurt."

He cut off Sarah's air supply completely, and let them watch as her face went red, then dangerously purple, while her mouth gaped uselessly. Her movements, as she flopped her limbs around desperately, grew weaker and weaker, till she was nearly hanging limply in the man's hold. Tears dampened the corners of her tightly closed eyes.

"STOP IT!" Blue screamed.

"YOU WILL NOT USE THAT LYING BACK-STABBER AGAINST ME!" Bee howled at him, but there was fear in her eyes.

Then, Hawkmoth suddenly swung around, swinging out with his cane. Foxy yelped as she was knocked back, her concealing illusion vanishing in a puff of smoke. Blue saw his opening, however, and Hawkmoth was winded by a strike to the chest. At the same time, Bee shot forward, grabbed the nearly unconscious, gasping and coughing Sarah, and yanked her out of harm's way.

While Hawkmoth was still recovering his balance, a small flash of red shot toward him, and in an instant the man was wrapped snuggly in Ladybug's yo-yo.

"WHAT?!" he struggled, but it was no use.

Ladybug hopped down through the broken window, pulling her yo-yo taut as she approached.

"How is this possible?!" he demanded, "I _watched_ her take your Miraculous!"

Ladybug sneered, "Looks like you underestimated us. Didn't you know Sarah used to be a Ladybug? I thought it was pretty well known."

Hawkmoth snarled, but did not reply.

"You okay, Sarah?!" Ladybug called over, keeping her eye on the enemy.

Bee, after helping Sarah sit down, had left her there and turned away, leaving Sarah rather uncertain as she turned to answer Ladybug. She stroked her aching neck lightly while clearing her throat, still catching her breath, "Y-yeah...kind of...confused though..."

"Let's just say, you made one _crazy_ Akuma," Foxy laughed, kneeling down to pat her on the back, "You stole that Marinette girl's cellphone and contacted Alya Cesaire, who tracked _us_ down to tell us so we could use it to track you!"

Sarah's jaw dropped, "...seriously?! I...God, I wish I could _remember_ any of this! Ugh..." "As you've probably gathered, you _did_ steal our Miraculouses, Sarah, but you dropped mine off with Marinette so I could get it back from her," Ladybug told her, and sighed, "I can't say the same for Chat, unfortunately..."

"Oh God, he's probably freaking out!" Sarah felt around for her phone, but realized it was still with her bag, which was still in Chloe's room, "...uh...do you guys think Marinette will mind if I use her phone? I can't seem to find mine..."

"Wait, you know how to contact him?" Ladybug blinked.

"... _maybe_...?" Sarah smiled sheepishly.

"...you know what? I'll question it later," Ladybug told her, "Please, call him."

Sarah pulled Marinette's phone out, and frowned at the screen, "Pass code?"

"3210," Foxy beat Ladybug to it.

"... _really_?" Sarah asked, and made a face when it worked, "...dude."

"Hurry up!" Ladybug nearly snapped.

"I am totally judging the infamous phone thief right now," Sarah shook her head, pulling up Adrien's contact number (which, as a normal teenager with technological crutches, she did _not_ have memorized).

Ladybug sputtered, but no one noticed, as she was still facing Hawkmoth, who was busy glaring at Sarah.

"And just _who_ is using a stolen phone right _now_?" Foxy smirked.

"Shush, I'm trying to make a call!" Sarah retorted, lifting the now dialing phone to her ear.

"Wait, how _did_ you know Marinette's pass code?" Blue questioned Foxy.

"Uh, _duh_ , Alya told us," Foxy sassed, "Don't you know how the tracking app works?"

"Shush!" Sarah waved her hand at them, as she heard the call pick up.

"Marinette?" Adrien questioned, bewildered.

"Hey, um...I don't really remember what happened, but...apparently I stole Marinette's phone so Ladybug could track me to Hawkmoth's lair, and...well, we sort of bagged him just now?"

"Wa-wa-wait! _Come again_?!"

"We bagged Hawkmoth!" Sarah repeated, excitement leaking through, enough that she had to cough and wheeze before continuing, "And I don't really remember anything because I was Akumatized, but apparently I was still in the right of mind somehow, and I swapped Ladybug's earrings for my fake ones at Marinette's house, and I also stole her phone and got Alya involved so I could be tracked, and so everyone found me here at his Lair just when he was trying to take your ring from me, and they beat him! THEY BEAT HIM! WE GOT HAWKMOTH!"

Her voice strained a little, and she coughed a couple more times during her announcement, but she was too excited to care.

 _"..._ I can't believe it...I CAN'T BELIEVE IT, ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" he gasped.

"YES!" she squealed, coughing and grimacing only a little before going on, "So get something to cover your face ASAP so you can see this! I'd send someone to get you, but...I don't think you guys want a grand reveal of identities just yet, and I'm betting you guys want to unmask this guy before anything else, so..."

"Yeah, totally! I'll call you back in a sec!" he dropped the call.

She pulled back the phone, waiting eagerly for him to call back.

"You're going to regret this," Hawkmoth ground out.

Bee snorted, "Yeah right!"

"So...do you need someone to hold the yo-yo for you?" Blue asked Ladybug.

"What?" she blinked.

"Well, you _are_ the one who first declared war on Hawkmoth," he told her, "So I figure you should be the one to unmask him."

"Yeah, totally!" Foxy agreed.

"As if there could be anyone else!" Bee supported.

Ladybug, however, grew conflicted, and said nothing.

The phone alerted them to Chat Noir's video-chat request, which Sarah quickly accepted. She then let out a laugh, which turned into a brief cough, but she didn't mind.

"Love the new mask!" Sarah offered a thumb's up.

"Eh, it's not much, but it will do," he fiddled with the edge of the hastily cut cloth-strip mask, "Are you okay? You look kinda-"

"Don't worry about _that_!" she grinned, turning the phone to show him Hawkmoth's defeat, "We have bigger fish to fry!"

Hawkmoth was looking away.

"Whoa...so we got him! We actually got him!" Chat grinned happily.

` "We got him, kitty," Ladybug smiled at her partner, but it faltered, "...I wish you were actually here to see it..."

"Aww, Bugaboo!" he looked genuinely touched.

Sarah looked down, "I'm sorry...it's my fault you're missing out, kitty-cat..."

"Hey! No sad faces, you silly bugs!" Chat scolded playfully, "Today is the day when good triumphs! And I am right there with you guys in spirit! Plus, I _can_ actually see this, you know?"

The girls both laughed softly.

"Yeah, you're right here with me, Chat," Ladybug agreed, smiling at him warmly.

"So, let's get this show on the road!" Chat declared, "I want to see the face of the guy who tried to have me declawed!"

"Here, here!" Foxy cheered.

Bee smirked, and Blue was grinning. The winning team was nearly bursting with excitement.

"You doing the honors, Milady?" Chat looked at Ladybug expectantly.

Ladybug bit her lip, thinking about it, looking between Chat and the strangely silent, though still struggling, Hawkmoth.

"Bugaboo?" Chat asked.

"She wanted to share the honor with you," Sarah figured it out.

Ladybug looked at her, and then offered a bemused smile.

"My Lady's victory is _my_ victory," Chat promised, "You've earned it, Ladybug, so go on and make this cat proud!"

"...this wasn't exactly my victory though," Ladybug seemed to come to a decision, "We have a certain _meddler_ to thank for all this...and she put herself at considerable risk today...so what do you think? Should we let Sarah have the honors?"

"Wha-wha- _what_?" Sarah was startled, almost dropping the phone in her surprise.

"You know what? I couldn't agree more!" Chat was ecstatic, "She beat Hawkmoth at his own game! She's definitely earned it!"

"I..." Sarah looked uncertain.

"Yeah, you totally deserve it, girl!" Foxy told her.

Sarah bit her lip, and shook her head, "I...all I remember is hurting my friend..."

Bee, who had refused to look at her up till that point, then looked at her in surprise.

"I...at first, I thought I would _never_ consider her a friend...and I _lied_ to her like it was _nothing_...but...now I really regret it...when the truth came out, it _hurt_ her...and I _hated_ it. Before I knew it, I _did_ start to care, I _did_ see her as a friend...and when she was hurt because of me, it was more than I could bear...that's how Hawkmoth got to me, and...I don't deserve to be _honored_ for that..."

"...you...really mean that?" Bee asked quietly, uncertain.

Sarah looked up, hope beginning to shine in her eyes, "M-my friend can be mean, and egotistical, but...since I met her, she's changed so much, and she's becoming this really great person I can't help but admire...and...I used to dread being around her, but now I actually look forward to the time I spend with her, and...I...I just really hope she can somehow forgive me, and be my friend again..."

Sarah was quite red after spilling her heart out like that, and not sure if she really wanted to hear Chloe's response just yet, "S-so...um...i-if you want to honor someone, maybe should honor Honey Bee...for saving my butt even after all I did...thank you..."

Bee was stunned.

Chat was struggling to keep himself from demanding that Sarah turn the camera towards Bee, because the curiosity of her reaction was driving him batty.

Three pairs of eyes watched the interaction with wide eyes.

Sarah was busy staring at the ground.

"...you...you totally just _used an Akuma possession_ to defeat Hawkmoth, when anyone _else_ would have just done what he wanted...and you're trying to pin a medal on _me_?" Bee finally demanded, "That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"

Sarah blinked at her, "B-but...I don't even remember doing it!"

"Maybe not, but you weren't Akumatized anymore when you refused to hand over the Miraculouses, isn't that right?" Bee asked confidently.

"Uh, that...uh..." Sarah sputtered.

"You probably didn't have a clue what was happening, and you were probably whimpering like a pathetic loser," Bee started out jeering, but then her tone lost its edge, and she had to look away, "But you still protected the Miraculous with all you had, didn't you? I-I mean, _look_ at you! You look like absolute _crap_!"

Sarah was speechless.

"So...stop dawdling, and unmask that creep already!" Bee demanded.

"Uh...o-okay?" Sarah replied uncertainly.

"Here, I gotcha, girl," Foxy gently took the phone from Sarah, and gave her a hand up.

Seeing encouragement from everyone, Sarah took a breath, "...that broach by his neck?"

"Yup," Ladybug agreed, taking a better hold of her yo-yo string and preparing herself for any sudden movements from Hawkmoth.

Sarah slowly approached the villain, who glared back at her. Much as she hated to admit it, the guy was still terrifying even though he was all trussed up like a packaged Christmas tree. Still, she did her best not to show her fear as she came to stand before him.

Regardless of who did it, it was time to unmask this jerk.

"You will regret this," he promised quietly, "You never should have involved yourself with this, you foolish girl."

She raised her chin defiantly, finally meeting his cold eyes for that brief rise of righteous fury, " _You_ abused the Miraculous, and now you will pay the price."

Finally, she reached up to grasp the broach, and gently removed the delicate-looking thing. She closed her eyes as Hawkmoth's costume vanished in a flash of light, stepping back so she could get a better look when it ended.

Sarah did not recognize the man, though that was no surprise to her. However, everyone else gasped in shock at the reveal.

" _Gabriel Agreste_?!" Ladybug said it, clearly stricken.

Sarah felt her stomach plummet, "...isn't that...Adrien's...?"

She looked toward the phone screen, where the blond boy behind it was left absolutely shell-shocked.

"...papa?"

Gabriel did not respond.

…

Chapter End

* * *

Cripes, now I'm crying...*whimpers pathetically*

I KNEW GABRIEL WAS HAWKMOTH! I FREAKING KNEW IT! I DON'T HAVE TO DEFEND MY ARGUMENT ANYMORE! THE TRUTH IS OUT!

Ahem...yes, so, apparently either Hawkmoth's lair is under his house, or his INSANE technology managed to transport him across the city, in a matter of seconds, to the place I had in mind when I wrote this...I NO LONGER KNOW WHAT TO BELIEVE.

Er, moving on...

So, after Siren's visit, Marinette and Alya were fairly jarred out of the spell she'd put them under before. Then when Hawkmoth stripped Sarah of Siren's powers, Nino and Chloe were VERY quick to transform, so they caught up with Ladybug and Foxy pretty quickly, and came up with a plan on the way there. They weren't sure what they were going to find, so they decided Foxy would be sneaky while Bee and Blue drew attention, and Ladybug would hang back until the moment was right.

By the time they actually saw the situation, Bee was launching herself through the window without a second thought. It would have ended a lot quicker if Ladybug had busted in instead, but...yeah, that wasn't in the cards. So...wow, even when she's NOT trying to, Chloe SOMEHOW manages to cause more drama than necessary. ^_^; Sorry, Chloe. I'm actually rooting for you, I swear!

Yeah, Sarah probably should have attempted the technique to throw him off when he grabbed her from behind...but due to a variety of factors, I imagine she was simply too disoriented and psyched-out to try. Hawkmoth is a lot bigger and stronger than Sarah (who, size-wise, is pretty average compared to her female classmates, and she is only somewhat stronger than average now), and Hawkmoth was clearly more experienced and could have reacted faster than she could. Sarah is not a strong fighter, and adrenaline can only do so much when you're low on oxygen (crying and panicking tend to use up a lot, by the way). *curls up into the fetal position*

Under different circumstances, Chloe would have screamed at Sarah to fight, but she knew Foxy was coming at Hawkmoth from behind, and she was trying to play a role to confuse the enemy, and she probably realized the risk wasn't worth it. Chloe can be _very_ calculating.

Also, if the violence in this chapter upset you, I'm sorry. We all have our triggers, and I imagine something in here could be one of them. I tried to tone it down...but I do actually strive for accuracy...stupid Hawkmoth...anyway, sorry if anyone was triggered by this. Hopefully I kept the insanity brief enough to prevent the beginnings of an anxiety attack if this did happen to trigger you...it definitely made ME squirm.

Warning: the next chapter makes me cry. A lot. IT HURTS MY HEART GOSH DANG IT WHY DID I WRITE THIS?!

* * *

I do not ask for smiles for this chapter. Unless you REALLY appreciate the angst...o.o


	10. Didn't See That One Coming

SO SORRY THIS UPDATE TOOK SO LONG, EVERYONE!

* * *

Chapter 10: Didn't See That One Coming

The broken voice left everyone in the room shaken to the core. Before their eyes, the image of the carefree Chat Noir suddenly _shattered_ to reveal a devastated Adrien Agreste.

"Why?" Adrien demanded, "WHY?!"

Sarah covered her mouth, struggling to stifle a sob. The phone trembled in Foxy's hands.

"LOOK AT ME AND TELL ME _WHY_ , PAPA!" Adrien demanded, desperate, confused, and absolutely heartbroken, "HOW COULD YOU _DO_ THIS?! You _hurt_ people! You hurt my _friends_! You-! LOOK AT ME, PAPA!"

As if it would help, or perhaps because it didn't matter anymore, Adrien tore off the mask with one furious yank, "LOOK AT ME!"

It finally dawned on Sarah why Hawkmoth had claimed she'd regret unmasking him. He'd known. Gabriel had _known_ Chat Noir was his son.

"You knew?" Ladybug choked, having come to the same realization, "You knew and you still did all this?!"

Adrien was startled by the new line of thought, "You...you knew I was Chat Noir...?"

"I saw it through The Siren's eyes when she took his Miraculous," Gabriel claimed coolly.

"LIAR!" Ladybug snapped, "She had her eyes closed! How long have you actually known?!"

His expression remained stoic, and he did not reply.

"Wait, if he knew...wouldn't he just take the ring himself?" Blue asked.

"...no," Ladybug seethed, "His wife was the previous Peacock. We would have suspected him immediately."

"WHAT?!" Adrien's eyes bugged.

Ladybug winced, "...okay, so maybe you didn't know that..."

"Interesting _you_ would know, seeing as _someone_ stole my wife's Miraculous," Gabriel stated coldly.

Sarah gaped at Ladybug, "Wait, is he saying _you_ stole a Miraculous?"

"Recovered!" Ladybug retorted, "And it was the Guardian's idea, not mine! He insisted that we needed Peacock, and Madam Agreste...wasn't around..."

Ladybug looked away, falling silent.

"...anything _else_ you've been hiding from me, _father_?" Adrien ground out.

Gabriel did not respond.

Fiddling with the Miraculous in her hands, Sarah suddenly looked at in realization, "Hey, how do you make the Kwami-"

She yelped when it suddenly lit up, and a little lavender Kwami appeared in front of her face.

"Ah! Greetings!" he bowed quickly, "I am Nooroo, Kwami of the Butterfly Miraculous...and I am so terribly _sorry_ for what my previous Wielder did to you, I-"

"It's okay, really!" she stopped him, "I'm fine now!"

"...you do not wish to wield me," Nooroo noticed, then his eyes widened at the sight of her bracelet, "Oh! You are Wayzz's chosen?!"

"Wh-what?" she blinked, confused.

Nooroo blinked, and pointed at the bracelet, "Is that not the Turtle Miraculous in disguise?"

"I, uh...i-it's just a regular bracelet...I think..."

There was just no way her bracelet (which she'd owned for _years_ ) was the Turtle Miraculous, but if it had caught a Kwami's attention so easily, maybe she was missing something.

Or maybe she had just had a very long, emotionally trying day, and, with Hawkmoth turning out to be her friend's father, her sense of reality was a tad shaken.

"F-forgive me," the Kwami looked mortified, "I forgot for a moment that a Wielder would have been shielded from my powers, so clearly it could not be...it's just it's been a long time since I've been called out without the intent of possession...and you just happen to wear a bracelet...so I jumped to conclusions, please forgive me."

"I-it's fine, please don't worry about it," she assured him, "I just wanted to talk to you because I figured you might be able to help us understand...this."

She waved a hand at Gabriel as a way of explanation, "He's not talking."

"If it is something I can answer, I would be happy to assist," the Kwami promised, "Though I'm afraid he did not share much with me..."

"Anything you know would be great," she told him.

"He seeks the ultimate power that is achieved by combining the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculouses," the Kwami explained quickly, but then deflated, "But I do not know why he desires it so."

"…o- _kaaay_...anything else?" Sarah asked, deciding it was better for her focus and sense of sanity not to question _what the heck happened_ when you _combined_ Miraculouses.

"Well...oh, he altered the shape of my Miraculous's dormant form. I believe there is a picture within the pendant?" the Kwami said, pointing down at it.

"Oh..." Sarah looked down at the pendant in her hand. Slowly, cringing as she tried to open it as carefully as possible, she breathed a sigh of relief as it opened easily. She peered at the photo, "...she's beautiful."

"My wife," Gabriel spoke, "My wife who I could have had returned safely home with the power of the Miraculouses."

Silence fell, as realization slowly dawned on the group of teens.

"...you did all this to bring her home?" Adrien asked finally.

"I would do anything for your mother, Adrien," Gabriel said.

The pang of sympathy was felt by even the most furious hearts in the room, but the anger that followed could not compare.

"You should have told us!" Ladybug shouted, "We would have helped!"

"And I was supposed to risk everything on the hope you _might_ help?" he replied coolly.

"You could have told _me_!" Adrien snapped, nearly choking on a potent mix of emotions, "You _knew_ I was Chat Noir! You could have _trusted_ me!"

"So you could despise me for what I've become?" Gabriel looked away.

Adrien shook his head, frustrated beyond words.

"He had the right to know the truth!" Blue declared, furious, "Regardless of your reasons, you hurt people! You hurt your _son_! You hurt the people he _cares_ about! If all you wanted was to bring Adrien's mom home, you should have found another way! You should have stopped this, but you didn't! You're a selfish, heartless coward, and even if your son can forgive you, I never will!"

"Seconded!" Foxy snarled.

"What _I_ want to know is, how the h*ll the Miraculouses are supposed to bring Madam Agreste home?!" Bee demanded, "Tell us!"

"Thank you, Bee, I think we'd _all_ like to know how to bring Adrien's mother home," Ladybug asserted.

" _ **Definitely**_ ," Foxy and Blue spoke in unison.

"Well perhaps if _that girl_ hadn't already wasted the Black Cat's power, I could _show_ you, right now," Gabriel claimed.

Humiliation and rage shook the exhausted girl, "If you hadn't _attacked_ me, I wouldn't have had to use it!"

"Was it even yours to use?" he provoked.

She opened her mouth to retort, but it was all she could do to keep her tears from falling.

"Don't listen to him, Sarah, he's just stalling!" Blue declared.

"Should she listen to the boy who wears my wife's stolen Miraculous?" Gabriel turned on him.

Blue faltered for a brief moment.

"Hey! Just where do you think you get off saying things like that?!" Foxy snapped.

"Stop it, you idiots! He's distracting us from the real issue!" Bee snapped at all of them.

"That's what I _just_ said, Bee!" Blue retorted.

"Enough!" Ladybug declared, gritting her teeth and glaring daggers at the man who had once been her idol, "Tell us what we want to know, Gabriel!"

"I should answer to a liar and a thief?" he replied.

She hardened her expression, preparing to retort, but she wasn't the only one offended.

"DON'T YOU DARE TALK TO HER THAT WAY!" Adrien yelled through the speaker, "ANSWER THE QUESTION!"

"Is that any way to speak to your father?" Gabriel narrowed his eyes at the phone.

Adrien shook with frustration and rage.

"WHAT SORT OF FATHER _DOES_ THIS SORT OF SICK TWISTED THING TO HIS SON?!" Blue yelled.

Despite all the yelling, Foxy's ears then twitched at the sound of something else.

"Someone's coming!" she called out.

Four teens looked to the doors, but Foxy's head jerked up to look at the broken window.

"ABOVE!" Foxy cried, as a shadow fell over them.

Ladybug barely dodged a projectile in time. While she was off kilter, Gabriel yanked against her string, throwing her off even more.

"Ladybug!" Blue was the closest to catch her.

A group of people, shrouded in black with only the shine of their eyes visible, fell in through the window, landing with practiced ease. Then, before the teens could properly assess the situation, more of these "ninjas" burst in through the two doors.

In a matter of seconds, six men of slightly varied body types, three women (one looked a bit younger), two teens (a boy and a girl), and an escaped Gabriel Agreste surrounded the startled group of heroes, cutting off all retreat.

"Bee has the ring, and _that girl_ has the broach!" Gabriel pointed at Sarah.

Adrien was left in horrified shock as Foxy turned off the phone and pocketed it. Obviously Foxy didn't _want_ to cut off her friend, but she had a bunch of weird attackers coming after her, so she would have to regret it later.

Twelve trained (non-magical) fighters armed with various weapons and grabby hands, not under the influence of anything that could dampen their mental processes, verses four emotionally shaken magical teenage heroes, and one beat up teenage girl with limited fighting ability, was pretty unfair.

The heroes tried to stand together, but ended up split in three groups: Foxy with Blue, Ladybug with Bee, and despite best efforts Sarah was left alone with Nooroo and cornered against a wall by the two younger members of the assailants.

To say Sarah was shaken and terrified would have been a gentle way of putting it. Also, her arm was screaming from how one of the older attackers had grabbed and yanked a short while prior, before a friendly projectile konked him on the head. The lucky hit had been the only thing to keep her from losing the Butterfly Miraculous till that point.

"It's in her hand!" the muffled voice of the teenage girl declared.

Sarah quickly buried the Butterfly Miraculous into the safest pocket of her coveralls, and raised her arms in preparation for a fight.

A loud cry came from behind them, and the girl whipped around, her pale eyes widening, "That _idiot_!"

One of the men, tall with a slim build, had been sent sprawling across the ground, and was now nursing what was probably a _massive_ headache.

"That. Is. _It_! _You_ get the broach, and watch your back!" the girl ran off to help the person.

"Guess it's just you and me then," the boy shrugged, not once having taken his eyes off his target.

"Aww, is this your way of asking me to dance?" she quipped, trying not to act as cornered as she felt, but the shakiness of her voice betrayed her, "Sorry, but you're not my type."

Her remaining opponent was just a little taller than her, undoubtedly male, fast and strong. He was possibly in the same danger range as an untransformed Chloe, which, while still not in Sarah's favor, encouraged her to hope she had a chance.

A chance to keep him from taking the Miraculous from her until someone could rescue her sorry butt was all she needed.

It was too dark to tell, but her opponent's ember-like eyes seemed to sneer down on her, while she glared up at him with desperate, furious moonlit eyes.

"Haven't you had enough?" his voice, muffled by cloth, seemed to question her sanity.

"I will never let any of you hurt Nooroo again," she swore.

Hovering near her ear, Nooroo blinked at her declaration in surprise.

"How noble of you," the boy in black commented, stepping closer, "But who are you to judge us?"

"Who are you to try and claim a Miraculous?" she shot back.

"Shall I introduce myself?" he asked as he lunged.

She managed a block, and a spin away from the wall out into the open. He caught up quickly, however, and swiped at her feet with his leg extended close to the ground. Her legs knocked out from beneath her, she fell on her back, her head hitting the ground with a painful thump, despite curling inward just before impact as she'd been taught.

"Mademoiselle! Mademoiselle!" Nooroo called out in concern.

She struggled to open her eyes, vision blurry and spinning. Her head ached horribly, and she was trying to remember how to breath for the umpteenth time that day. Floppy arms barely managed to raise in time for her to grab at the hands grasping at her coveralls.

"S-stop!" she gasped out, struggling against him, "Don't!"

It was far too easy for him to pin her arms over her head. If she had been more self-aware at that moment, mortification of being straddled by a strange guy would have definitely been happening. As it was, she was preoccupied with struggling against his hold.

She was also _really_ sick of being pinned to the ground, regardless of how it was accomplished, or which jerk was guilty of it. (This was the third freaking time, for crying out loud, and already the second time that night!)

"Nooroo! Butterfly attack!" she yelled out.

"Wh-what?!" Nooroo started.

"I'm counting on you here!"

"B-but-"

" _Wow_ , you're out of it," the boy commented.

She just grinned at him, "You _wish_. Nooroo! Now!"

"Uh...attack!" Nooroo declared uncertainly.

"THE H*LL?!" the boy yanked back in surprise as a swarm of white hit his face, reflexively trying to swat the invasive insects away.

She jerked under him. He tried to grab at her blindly, but before he could get a good hold on her she managed to jerk her knee into his gut, hard enough she heard the air whoosh right out of him. It gave her just enough time to begin scrambling away, and she just barely yanked her ankle away before he could grab it.

The boy recovered fast though, and, while she tried to make a break for the nearest (and still open) door on shaky legs, he quickly caught up. She cried out in pain when he yanked her back by her braid, and blindly struck back at him with little success. He managed to slam her against the wall and pin her there, the impact winding her as well as causing her to hit her head again. With her head throbbing, vision blurred and spinning, and every muscle in her body aching and exhausted, she knew her chances of fighting him off had expired.

"Please...don't take Nooroo..." she knew she was crying again, and she hated it, " _Please_..."

She never saw the flash of pity in the boy's eyes, or how his free hand hesitated over her pocket for a precious few seconds.

Bee didn't see it either, not that that would have stopped her from fly-kicking him away from Sarah.

"Come on!" Bee grabbed Sarah's wrist and bolted for the doorway.

"I got you covered, Bee!" Blue called from behind them.

The front was clear, allowing them to run down the stairs unhindered. Sarah stumbled to keep up with Bee, who finally just scooped Sarah up and over her shoulder so she could leap down the staircase faster.

"You're _heavy_!" Bee griped.

Sarah was too busy being terrified and in pain to answer.

The rest of the team was already right behind them, with their assailants attempting to pursue. Like whatever freaky ninjas they were, some tried to close the distance with dare-devil means, leaping, swinging, and landing like crazy performers. Fortunately, not all of them were as inclined to do this, and all of the four heroes were perfectly adept at dodging and out-running pursuers ( _thank you, Akumas_!), so they managed to break out of the building, and launch themselves out onto the rooftops with the badies still eating dust. After a few streets, they managed to outdistance them, and lost them completely thanks to another illusion from Foxy.

Once they were certain it was safe, they paused for breath. Bee set Sarah down on her own feet, and Foxy whipped out Marinette's phone to call Adrien.

Adrien answered immediately, "IS EVERYONE OKAY?!"

"More or less, yeah," Foxy said, turning the phone so he could see everyone.

"We got away before they could take anything," Ladybug told him, "Hold on, okay? I'm gonna come get you...wait, where are you?"

"Er, next to the school," he looked back behind himself, "I was...um...nevermind..."

"Okay, that's fine, which side?"

"...meet you on the front steps?"

"Alright, try to stick to the shadows," she nodded to him, then she looked at the others, "I'll take the ring to him. I want the rest of you to go straight to Master Fu's. We'll meet you there."

"Who the heck is Fu?" Bee blinked.

"Someone I trust. I believe Foxy and Blue know the way," Ladybug replied, then held out her hand, "Ring, please."

Bee was only supporting the wobbly Sarah with one arm at that moment, so she had a hand free to pull the ring out of her collar and hand it over.

"Stick together, make sure no one sees you, alright?" Ladybug asked, tucking the ring safely away in her own collar, and turning to fly off.

"Be careful," Blue said, "Bring him back, LB."

Ladybug nodded, then threw out her yo-yo, and was off.

"Alright, I'm gonna let you go now, boy," Foxy told Adrien, "Hang tight, alright?"

Adrien nodded, "Stay safe, you guys."

"See you soon, Foxy out," Foxy hung up, put the phone away, and turned to the group, "Alright, just follow me, everyone."

"Wait, you can just drop me off with a cab or something," Sarah protested, pulling away from Bee despite her shaky legs, "I don't want to slow you down."

Nooroo, perched on her shoulder, blinked at her.

"If you weren't so banged up already, I would punch you for that," Foxy glowered.

"They're just after the Miraculouses, they won't want to bother with me," Sarah argued.

"You're slowing us down by arguing, so shush," Foxy told her.

"But-"

"Nope, ignoring you now," Foxy turned to Blue, "You mind taking over if Bee gets tired? I need my hands free."

"Roger," Blue offered a casual salute.

"Ugh," Sarah groaned.

"Try and be a little more grateful!" Bee snapped, "You're _heavy_ , you know!"

"I heard you the first time," Sarah dead-panned, "I _get_ _it_. You saved my damsel-in-distress butt back there. _Thank you_. A thousand times, _thank you_."

"I know, I'm amazing," Bee flipped her hair.

"That is a word for it, yes," Sarah sighed, exhausted.

"Also, Bluebird, I'm tired," Bee said.

" _So_ saw that coming," he rolled his eyes.

"I think we all did," Sarah scoffed.

"Come _on_ , guys!" Foxy waved her hand at them, trying to hurry them.

Blue quickly pulled Sarah up on his back, making sure she was secure before moving to follow Foxy.

"Ugh, I'll make this up to you later," Sarah told him.

"What about me?" Bee demanded.

"For you, I'm going to _pretend_ you did _not_ just call me fat," Sarah dead-panned.

…

Adrien turned as Ladybug dropped beside him, the whizzing of her yo-yo in the quiet night air having foretold her arrival.

"Ladybug, I-"

Ladybug pulled the ring out, and held it out to him, "Come on, we should hurry."

He deflated in relief at the sight of the ring, and he naturally held his hand out to receive it. The moment it landed in his palm, Plagg appeared in a flash of light.

"Need...Camembert..." Plagg wilted dramatically into Adrien's hands.

Adrien quickly shrugged off his bag, setting it down, and pulled out a round container. The moment the lid was opened, Plagg wasted no time pouncing on the pungent cheese, and began chowing down ravenously.

Stepping back to allow his Kwami to finish eating, Adrien put the ring on, and turned to look at Ladybug. He found her looking around nervously, anxious to leave the memory-filled space that, at that moment, felt _incredibly_ unsafe and exposed.

"...I'm sorry," Adrien said.

Ladybug looked at him in surprise, and suffered at how her partner was clearly wrecked with guilt. She lunged, startling him greatly as she grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him.

"Don't you dare! Don't you _dare_ apologize!" she snapped, furious, then suddenly she was hugging him tightly, shaking, "Don't apologize, _please_... _none_ of this is your fault... _none_ of it...you got that?! You _got_ that, you stupid cat?!"

Closing his eyes tightly, he hugged her back just as fiercely, his voice coming out as a whisper when he finally managed to speak, "...thank you, Ladybug..."

She did her best to stifle a sob, sniffling, "...I wish...I wish Lucky Charm would let me fix this...I'm so sorry, Chat...I'm so sorry, Adrien..."

"Fine, I'm _done_ eating, can we _go_ now?" Plagg complained.

"Plagg!" Adrien hissed.

"W-we should go," Ladybug started to pull away.

Adrien hugged her tighter, surprising her, "...as long as you are on my side, I know I can get through anything. Thank you, Ladybug...and thank you, _whoever_ you are under the mask."

Ladybug flushed, ducking her head even though he couldn't see, "...and I'd be _nothing_ without you, idiot..."

His heart fluttered, and he blushed, "...that is a pawsitively ridiculous notion, milady."

"A crazy cat lady without her cat is just a crazy lady, dummy," she snorted, pulling back to look him in the eye, "And I mean it...I never could have come this far without you. No matter what happens next...you'll always be the most _purr_ fect partner a lady could ask for."

She blushed and ducked her head as she said the last bit. Adrien smiled warmly at her, deeply touched.

"Can we _go_ now?" Plagg whined.

"Plagg, transform me!"

…

Fu blinked in surprise when he answered the door to find four exhausted teenagers, three in-suit, and all four looking like they'd been roughed up.

"Long story, long night, we need a safe place to hide for a bit and figure out what to do next," Foxy summarized, "Ladybug and Chat Noir are on their way here."

"Please, come in," Fu stepped aside, regaining a visage of calm.

His eyes widened when, as Blue passed him, he caught sight of Nooroo on Sarah's shoulder. He then turned in time to see Bee pause, gaping at him.

" _Hang on_ , you're that weird old man who-"

"Get in the house, Bee," Foxy snapped.

Bee frowned at the politely smiling elder as she followed her teammates inside. Fu closed the door behind her, and followed them to the guest-room most of them were familiar with. Foxy helped Sarah climb off Blue's back, but left her standing on her own when she received a call on her flute.

"On our way!" Chat announced, "You guys there yet?"

"Yup, we're all good," Foxy assured him, "Hurry up and get your butts over here!"

"Right, Chat Noir out!" he hung up.

"Shouldn't be long now," Foxy put her flute away.

"Are you alright, Mademoiselle McCoy?" Fu inquired, noticing how unfocused her eyes had become, and how off her balance was.

Sarah either nodded and fell forward due to the imbalance, or she just collapsed period. Several quick hands reached out and grabbed her, saving her from a collision with the wood floor. Her name was called, somewhat frantically, but she did not respond.

"Lay her down on the mattress," Fu advised, gesturing to the mattress in the middle of the room, "I'll take a look at her."

With a little fussing, Sarah was soon laid down on her back, with Fu calmly inspecting her pulse, pupil dilation, breathing, and examining her head for visible injury. He hovered his hands over her, eyes closed, then sat back.

"Her injuries are mild. She just needs rest," Fu stated, "I imagine you must all be worn out as well. Please, make yourselves at home, I will get some medicine. Wayzz?"

The Turtle Kwami hesitantly flew out of hiding, "Yes?"

"Ha! I knew it!" Bee crowed in victory at the sight of the Kwami, "And _Sarah_ thought you were just a normal ol-!"

"I am only 188," Fu interrupted quickly, as if that would somehow defend his case.

The three teens openly gaped at him.

"Come, Wayzz, we have work to do," Fu continued as if nothing was wrong, gesturing for the Kwami to follow him to another part of his home.

"...so...I gather you noticed him keeping tabs on you," Foxy threw out.

"Of course!" Bee held a hand to her chest, everything in her tone and posture openly declaring that anything less would have been ridiculous, "But Sarah wouldn't believe me! She thought _I_ was crazy!"

Foxy rolled her eyes, " _Aaaanyway_ , he's the Guardian. He's the one who gave you your Miraculous in the first place. That's why he was keeping an eye on you."

" _Well_ , he could have _said_ something!" Bee huffed.

"The Kwamis decide if and when it's time to reveal him," Foxy shrugged, "He doesn't interfere unless he has to."

Bee hummed in reply, losing interest.

"Hey, um, does anyone know where Nooroo went?" Blue questioned, looking around.

"Er...he was here a minute ago..." Foxy said, looking now too, "Did he follow after Fu?"

"Nooroo~, are you still in here~?" Blue called in a hushed tone.

"You need not worry, he is still here," Fu said as he walked in, carrying a tray of medical supplies, "Sarah formed a temporary bond with Nooroo, allowing him to be present, but it severed when she lost consciousness, so he has returned to his dormant state."

"Oh...how exactly did she do that then?" Foxy asked, "I thought the Kwami just _appeared_ with a new owner, and stuck around until you transformed? But Nooroo didn't reappear right away when Sarah took the Miraculous off Hawkmoth..."

"If you reject a Miraculous, the Kwami will not appear, no matter how long it is physically in your possession," Fu explained, setting the tray down on the floor, gathering from it what he needed, "When each of you first found your Miraculouses, you knew they were meant for you, and so you claimed them, even if you did not realize it.

"In Sarah's case, she was aware that the Miraculous did not belong to her, and so Nooroo did not appear. However, at a later point she must have wished for Nooroo to appear, despite not claiming his Miraculous as hers, and so a frail bond was formed. As you can see, he vanished as soon as her desire for his presence did. As long as his Miraculous is in her possession, he will only reappear if she wishes it upon waking."

"...but, um, _hypothetically_ speaking...what if you just _really_ wanted the Kwami to go away after just finding the Miraculous in your possession?" Blue asked a bit guiltily.

"The Kwami is connected to the Miraculous. Unless you genuinely rejected them both, the Kwami would remain," Fu explained, a knowing look in his eyes.

"Ah, okay," Blue smiled sheepishly.

"Let me guess, you thought your Kwami was a monster that wanted to eat you," Foxy teased.

"What about _you_?" he shot back.

"I made the _grand_ mistake of thinking my Kwami was the cutest thing in existence when I first met her," Foxy swore, "...okay, so she's still cute, but she's a _huge_ pain in the butt!"

"Does she have a stinger?" Bee snarked.

"Uh, no."

"Then what do _you_ have to complain about?" Bee demanded.

"...she has _claws_ , and _fangs_ ," Foxy defended, "...okay, look, I hear your Kwami can be legit brutal...but Trixx is the biggest smart-Alec in existence, I _swear_...and she's _constantly_ showing off her "worldly knowledge" every chance she gets. _And_ she pulls pranks!"

"Dude...she sounds a lot like _you_ ," Blue pointed out.

Foxy gaped at him, obviously offended, "You-!"

Fortunately for Peacock Blue, that was the moment Ladybug and Chat Noir arrived, and so Foxy Rouge forgot to throw derogatory verbs and adjectives, or her fist, at him.

"Ladybug, Chat Noir, welcome," Fu greeted them, pausing his efforts in treating some of Sarah's more visible cuts and scrapes.

"Is she okay?" Chat asked, worried.

"She passed out when we got here," Foxy explained, "Fu says she'll be fine though, so don't worry."

Ladybug gave Sarah a slightly haunted look, then looked away with clenched fists.

"...I guess she's been though a lot today..." Chat said softly, suffering a painful mix of guilt, heartbreak, and anger.

Ladybug reached over to gently squeeze his shoulder.

"Come on, you guys," Blue called them over with his hand, "We're having a team sit-together. You're making it an awkward mix of sitting and standing."

"Get your depressed butts down here so the rest of us can stay sitting, _please_ ," Foxy added.

Ladybug attempted a smile, and nudged Chat with her shoulder. He followed her to the spot she picked, and sat down next to her. After a moment, she entwined her fingers with his, which brought a faint, grateful smile to his lips.

"We...haven't told Fu anything really yet," Foxy voiced.

Chat Noir winced.

"...I understand you were somehow able to recover the Butterfly Miraculous tonight," Fu said, looking at Chat in concern. Wayzz phased into the room, but paused at the tense atmosphere.

"...Hawkmoth was my father," Chat admitted, unable to look anyone in the eye.

Fu looked grieved, but perhaps not so surprised.

"He didn't really tell us why he did all this," Ladybug spoke up, "He mentioned Adrien's mother, but he refused to clarify anything...and then suddenly _friends_ of his came in and attacked us, so we had to run."

"...I see..." Fu nodded slowly, looking down.

"...I don't know for how long he's known...but he already knew I was Chat Noir," Chat ground out, trembling slightly, "I don't understand why he did all this...but I know it's _wrong_."

Every heart in the room ached for him. Ladybug squeezed his hand a little, and without looking at her he gently returned the gesture.

"...I do not know about your father...but I know that I was right to choose you as Chat Noir, Adrien," Fu said, surprising the boy into looking up, "Standing up for what is right, even where someone you love dearly stands in the wrong, is a most difficult choice to make."

"...thank you, Master Fu..." Chat said finally, looking down again, but with a somewhat more relaxed expression than before.

"...the brew is finished, Master," Wayzz called Fu's attention meekly.

"Ah, thank you, Wayzz," Fu got up.

Ladybug looked like she wanted to say something, but stopped herself, biting her lower lip as she watched the elder leave the room.

Soon after, Fu returned and handed out cups of the brew to each of the heroes, setting the last one aside for Sarah. Several faces were made at the taste.

"What is this again?" Foxy tried to say with a straight face.

"An old family recipe, it will help you heal faster," Fu explained.

Bee almost set her cup away.

"What, the Queen Bee can't handle it?" Foxy challenged.

"I'm not even hurt!" Bee swore.

"Would your Kwami agree with that?" Blue asked.

A few seconds later, Bee was sipping at the brew again, with obvious distaste. Foxy smirked, and Blue covered a small laugh.

Ladybug finished her cup before finally voicing her thoughts to the elder, "...Fu...with the Butterfly recovered...it's safe now for us to reveal our identities to each other, right?"

Chat looked at her in surprise, as did the other conscious teens in the room.

"If you believe you are ready," Fu said, a mysterious glint in his eyes, "Though you might consider waiting until Mademoiselle McCoy awakens, if wish to include her."

"It's not like she doesn't already know who all of us-...craaaap... Blue winced.

" **What**?" four teens looked at him in surprise.

"...okay, so you all know she knows who you are, right?" he grinned nervously, "She...accidentally let me know that she knew...though I still don't have a clue who you guys are, okay? I mean, other than Adrien or Chloe, obviously...all I know is somehow she managed to learn who all of us are...except for Master Fu."

As far as he knew, anyway.

"H-how could she know?" Ladybug looked dizzy, "I can understand her knowing about Adrien and Chloe, since they go to school together, but...you and Foxy..."

Blue laughed nervously, "Well, she found _you_ out, Ladybug, so why not?"

"Yeah!" Foxy latched onto that thought, "If she could find _you_ out, out of everyone in Paris, how hard could it be?"

"Uh...maybe you have a point," Ladybug laughed to hide her nervousness, "So, uh, I suppose I don't mind waiting for Sarah...knowing her, she'd _love_ to see your reactions..."

Foxy smirked knowingly at Bee, "Oh yeah, she'd _loooove_ to see certain reactions...I'm down for sharing with you guys. What about you, Blue?"

"Seems only fair," Blue shrugged, "I don't like keeping secrets anyway...waaaait, does this mean I can tell my girlfriend about me now?"

"Only if I can tell my boyfriend," Foxy crossed her arms, "God knows he's terrible at keeping secrets, but if we can tell people now, he deserves to know."

Ladybug looked to Master Fu, who smiled, "I will trust your judgment."

Sighing, Ladybug nodded, "...the risk of minion-makers is gone, but we still need to be careful who we share our identities with. Unless those fighters become a regular problem, we probably won't have to run off on our friends and loved ones as much now, so I would still recommend keeping it on a need-to-know basis...but if you have someone you know you can trust with this, I guess we all know just how valuable a confidant can be...so...please use your best judgment, everyone."

Foxy and Blue nodded, relieved.

"My girlfriend is...er...wow, um, you guys _might_ not want me to tell her when you find out who she is, but I _swear_ she's completely trustworthy," Blue promised, "She's one of the nosiest people I know, but when it counts, you can count on her, you get me?"

"Nosy like Sarah?" Foxy raised a brow.

Blue cringed, "When those two put their heads together, sh*t happens."

"Sarah knows your girlfriend?" Foxy was slightly surprised, "I didn't realize you were that close."

The other teens were surprised as well.

"Well, er, she's actually closer to my girlfriend than me, I think..." Blue squirmed a bit, "I mean, they have _code-names_ for their schemes. Don't get me started. Leaving them alone for too long is _dangerous_."

Foxy's jaw dropped, then she pouted at the sleeping girl. She was definitely going to have a little talk with Sarah about "cheating" on her with another schemer. And then she was going to demand to meet this girl, and find out what they could _possibly_ be scheming about. Surely it had to be interesting!

Blue had no idea why Foxy was frowning at Sarah, but he decided not to ask.

"Everyone who matters already knows my secret," Bee humphed, "Adrikins, Sabrina-..."

Eyes wide, Bee yanked out her communicator, and began texting with lighting-fast fingers. She slowly began to relax after a minute, when Sabrina texted her back that she was fine. With a quick glance towards Chat Noir, she decided to keep her story vague for the time being. As long as Sabrina knew to play it safe and go home (just in case Gabriel had realized who Honey Bee was and sent his goons to the hotel), that the Miraculouses were all safe, and that Chloe herself and Sarah were...well, _alive_ , then that would do for now.

"Everything alright?" Chat asked.

"Ga-...my identity is most likely compromised..." Bee looked away, "I was just making sure Sabrina was aware."

"Sh*t, Marinette!" Foxy realized, "He heard us mention her name!"

Ladybug jolted at her name (not that any of the other teens noticed, because they were too busy being surprised at the familiar name and/or worrying about their friend), and out of habit jumped to protect her cover, "Oh! I have her number, I'll text her!"

"But I have her phone!" Foxy pulled out and frantically waved the item, wide-eyed.

"She, uh, has another phone!" Ladybug scrambled, "J-just hold on a minute, I have a way to contact her, okay?"

If they'd chosen to press the matter further, she would have given up the ruse and just admit she _was_ Marinette (since she was planning to reveal herself soon anyway), but they let it go, so she didn't. Bee _almost_ said something, still not sure _how_ Marinette and Ladybug could _possibly_ be so close (she'd only _just_ heard, back when they'd been tracking the phone to Hawkmoth's lair, that Marinette was _apparently_ someone Ladybug trusted), but a text from Sabrina distracted her.

Ladybug used the "busy time" to text her parents, and make sure they were alright. Of course, now she had to admit she was...out...because...she...was with Sarah! For reasons! Yup!

"Sh*t, what about Alya?!" Blue gasped, "You don't think they'd mess with her, do you?!"

"Uh...you know what, I have her number, I can check in with her," Foxy volunteered.

She wasn't _quite_ ready to be revealed just yet. As she messed with her communicator, her thoughts also went to her family, and how they just _might_ be wondering where she went...and _boy_ did she have a story to tell! Being contacted by an Akuma who wanted Alya to help her help the heroes defeat Hawkmoth? She could not _wait_ to post the results to her blog! Paris would be _so_ relieved to know that Ladybug and Chat Noir had _not_ in fact been defeated!

But it would have to wait, because her team had some rather _distressing_ details to sort out first. Stupid Hawkmoth just _had_ to be f*cking Gabriel Agreste, and then just _had_ to have an army of freaky ninjas just _waiting_ to jump out and attack them...d*mn it all...

"Whew, all safe," Ladybug sighed in relief as her parents texted her back, "It doesn't look like anyone has bothered them. If those people were going to approach her, I'm sure they would have tried already. I think the Dupains should be fine."

"Okay, but I'd feel better after doing a sweep around the bakery as soon as any of you feel like running out with me," Foxy said, checking the texts her mom sent back to her, "As for Alya, it looks like she's somewhere safe, and no one has bothered her family either."

Chat was about to say he'd go with her to the bakery, but Blue cut in too fast.

"Where is she?" Blue really wanted to know.

"I just told you, she's _safe_ ," Foxy snarked, "She's not where those creeps will find her, alright?"

"She doesn't exactly have the best track record for lying low," Blue crossed his arms.

"Look, she _knows_ that none of us are out on scene, so she has no reason to be looking for a scoop. She's not stupid," Foxy's tone dared him to argue.

Blue frowned, but said nothing more.

"Where's the bathroom?" Bee demanded to know, frowning at her reflection where she had a mirror briefly replace her communicator screen.

Master Fu calmly directed her, and she walked off.

"Er, before we go out and check on anything...I really think we need to...discuss a few things..." Ladybug grimaced.

There were several things they all wanted to avoid talking about, but they had to face the facts soon...

"...so, when Bee gets back from primping then?"

Foxy's suggestion was met with unanimous silence. After a moment, Ladybug leaned over to check on Sarah, who was still out cold.

"When do you think she'll wake up?" she directed to Fu.

"Unless we wake her, she may very well sleep for hours," Fu replied.

Ladybug sighed, disappointed despite anticipating the answer.

After everything poor Sarah had gone through, Marinette really wanted to do anything she could to compensate for it. The wait was still frustrating though. She really wanted to drop the act and come clean about her identity, but she didn't want to disturb Sarah's rest either. If Sarah didn't wake up soon, she would likely cave and reveal herself. It wasn't that she really _owed_ it to Sarah to wait for her, just...she wanted to.

Why couldn't anything ever be easy?

"...why are you glaring at Marinette's phone?" Chat blinked at Foxy.

"No particular reason, just hoping to return it soon," she grumbled.

Alya really wanted to talk to her friend...about a lot of things. Mostly she just wanted to know for sure that her friend was okay...but she was also worried about another issue. Now that she knew that Adrien was Chat Noir...that really complicated things. Knowing just how much Adrien loved Ladybug... _really_ loved her...it made her worry. She wasn't sure what she could actually tell Marinette...but not being able to tell her anything at _all_ , because the girl _didn't have her freaking phone_ , was quite vexing.

Then a certain blond girl returned (much sooner than expected)...with her Kwami perched on her shoulder.

"Did I miss anything?"

Actually facing the fact that Honey Bee's secret identity _wasn't_ a secret anymore left the group a little tongue-tied and awkward.

"Er...not really," Ladybug answered lamely.

Pollen cleared her throat.

"This is Pollen," Chloe tilted her head slightly toward the Kwami, half-rolling her eyes.

"It's, um, nice to meet you, Pollen," Ladybug said.

The other three offered waves and uncertain smiles.

"Welcome back, Pollen," Fu nodded to her.

Pollen nodded back, then nodded to Wayzz before flying down to check on Sarah. On her own now, Chloe retook her seat.

If anyone would have bothered to observe more closely, they would have noticed a red mark on Chloe's forehead where Pollen had head-butted her, just before accepting the girl's apology for throwing her Miraculous away earlier that day. Whatever they had discussed, any tension between them was now gone.

"So...you transformed back..." Blue said hesitantly.

"Unless you guys think we're in _any_ way prepared to go on a manhunt, I'm done running around for the day," Chloe huffed, "And unlike most of you, I don't have anything to hide anymore."

Chat cringed in on himself slightly.

"...I suppose you're right..." Ladybug admitted softly, "I don't think any of use are up for instigating anything more tonight...the important thing is, we have the Butterfly Miraculous...uh..."

"It's still in one of Sarah's pockets," Foxy shrugged, "Apparently she didn't really lay a "claim" on the Miraculous, so Nooroo went _poof_ when she passed out."

"O-kay..." Ladybug shook it off, "As I was saying...they can't pit Akumas against us anymore, and we're...together."

She looked to Chat, who offered her a small, encouraging smile. Taking his hand again, she squeezed it gently, silently promising that, no matter what, she would be there for him.

"...I suppose I can take care of Sarah for tonight," Chloe said, avoiding any eye-contact, "Knowing her, she'll probably be out until morning."

Chat's eyes glowed with pride at Chloe.

Ladybug winced, "...I...was rather hoping to share my name with you all before the night ends..."

"If you think you can wake that human log up, be my guest," Chloe scoffed, "Screaming, smelling salts, ice cubes, poking, pinching, slapping, _none_ of it works. It takes _hours_ to get her up in the morning."

"Less than two hours," Pollen corrected, "But rarely less than one."

"Unless Pollen stings her," Chloe shrugged.

"Then it takes 15 to 30 minutes," Pollen nodded.

Ladybug groaned, recalling her own issues trying to wake up Sarah one very cold night close to a year ago...and how the girl had slept through being carried like a potato sack out a window, and through the air to the nearest rooftop. Good grief.

Blue snorted, "Yeah, when my Kwami tries to call her too late at night, she never answers."

"Your Kwami calls her?" Foxy blinked.

"Yeah, to complain about _my_ sleep habits," he rolled his eyes, "Then when Sarah won't answer her phone, she complains to me about Sarah ignoring her."

"I guess fussiness must be a peacock thing," Foxy smirked slyly.

"Well, yea-waaaaait, that was a shot at me too, wasn't it?" he gave her an unimpressed look.

"Was it? I hadn't realized," she blinked, suddenly the epitome of innocent ignorance.

"Okay, now I _know_ it was," he rolled his eyes, but let it go.

"Anyway, before Chloe tries to take Sarah home, we should probably do that patrol," Foxy said, standing and stretching, "Who's with me?"

"Yep!" Chat bounced up, ready to go.

"Uh-wait!" Ladybug floundered, "I-I need to, um...I...I'll check on Marinette and her family! I need to, um, take care of something over there anyway...?"

It was really hard to drop an act after over two years. Gosh dang it.

"O-kay...?" Foxy blinked.

"Where's Alya? I'll make sure she's okay too," Blue stood too.

"Actually, I'll take care of that," Foxy said quickly, "It would be better to have your eyes and Chat's hearing to scout around the hotel, right?"

"Exactly!" Ladybug agreed, feeling relieved, "You two are our best scouts, after-all. If anyone can spot something amiss, especially over such a large area, it would be you two."

Chat shrugged, "Fair point, and I know my classmates couldn't be in safer hands."

Blue sighed, "Yeah, I guess that's fair."

"Sorry, fan-boy," Foxy shrugged.

"...right," Blue said dully, recalling that his teammates thought he was just a fan, after he'd claimed as much to explain his concerns for the dare-devil reporter in the past. However, he then raised his head, looking Foxy straight in the eye, "Alright, I trust you, Foxy, just...know that...she's a lot more important to me than you know."

Foxy looked stunned.

"Alright, bro, ready to stake out the hotel?" Blue turned to Chat, smirking at his best friend.

Chat nodded, and the two headed out the balcony doors. Recovering from her previous surprise, Foxy whipped out her flute, and sent her signature camouflage mist over them.

"Thanks, Foxy!" Blue called back, already gone from view.

Something was niggling at the back of Foxy's mind, but she shook it off, handing Ladybug Marinette's phone. Ladybug accepted the phone with an almost sheepish smile, then headed out after the boys. Foxy played her flute for Ladybug, obscuring her from view.

"Be back soon!" the unseen girl in red called back, before the whizzing sound of her yo-yo indicated she'd flown away.

Cloaking herself last, Foxy flew out into the night to make sure her family was safe.

…

After a quick sweep of the perimeter, neither Peacock Blue nor Chat Noir could find anything amiss. Chloe's bedroom proved to be empty, and didn't appear to be tampered with. After that, Chat stealthily stalked the inner corridors and stairways, while Blue cautiously checked every window from the outside, all the while desperately hoping he wouldn't accidentally see something that should not be seen.

In the end, everything was normal (if you didn't count the snoring crocodile wearing a night cap), and the two boys met up on the tippy-top of the building as planned. Scanning out around the building again, neither could see anything worth worrying about.

"It doesn't look like they've tried anything over here," Chat mused, "Maybe we got lucky...or, well, maybe they figured that going after the Mayor's daughter was a poor choice..."

"...yeah...pretty much the only people dumb enough to go after Chloe have-er, _had_ the "Akuma Rationality" thing going on. Those guys we saw earlier...I don't think they're quite _that_ reckless," Blue commented, watching his friend in concern.

"And my father's probably removed himself as far away from the situation as humanly possible..." Chat clenched his fists, "...he'll just hire someone else to take care of his problems, as always..."

He started slightly when Blue lightly gripped his shoulder.

"Uh...sorry," Chat let out a sheepish sort-of-laugh.

"Dude, you have nothing to be sorry for," Blue promised, "Your old man's a jerk, I know. If he wasn't your dad, and walled up behind yards of insane security and ungodly amounts of money, I would have punched him a long time ago for some of the sh*t he's pulled, and that was _before_ I found out he was Hawkmoth. What he did was absolutely _sick_ , man, and you don't deserve _any_ of this sh*t. You need to vent, dude, so cut the crap and stop trying to pretend you're not absolutely f*cked up inside after all this. I'm here for you, man. That's what best friends are for...which I _am_ , by the way, unless you've been cheating on me with Ladybug, or Foxy...or Sarah...dude, I should _not_ be competing with three girls for best bro status..."

Chat went from depressed, but deeply touched, to justifiably stunned, "Uh...wait, what?"

"Yeah, man, I was...actually going to tell you right off, even though Duusu was dead-set against it...then Sarah tackled me into a bush, and for the record I did _not_ lose my hat, I just had no other way to explain why the heck I was legit crawling out of a for-real bush, because Sarah made this huge stink about no-one finding out I was talking with her...which, now that I think of it, was probably because it might have made you suspicious...dude, it's absolutely _insane_ that neither of us figured it out somewhere along the way, because the excuses we were throwing at each other were legit _ridiculous_ man...but, I guess it was kind of a good thing we didn't, because Sarah wasn't kidding when she said you got minionized a lot, and...yeah, but still, I _wanted_ to tell you, I mean, I even _told_ you I wanted to tell you, but I wasn't supposed to, just like you weren't supposed to tell me...and, yeah."

Chat's mouth opened and closed, eyes wide.

"Dude, acting like a fish is not helping with the merman theory," Nino smirked.

"I don't shower all the time!" Chat retorted out of habit.

Nino grinned widely, "You sure, man? 'Cause I see you in there _way_ too often."

"That's-" Chat laughed, relief washing over him and leaving him with a wide grin of his own, "That's because I'm jumping out the window to save the day, Nino!"

Blue face-palmed, " _Seriously_? Dude! No _wonder_ you still stink!"

"I don't stink!" Chat was affronted, then he reconsidered, "Er...well, if I _did_ stink...it's not my fault! It's the Camembert!"

Blue's eyes lit up with understanding, "Right! You're always complaining about that...you know, you could have just told me you had weird cravings, dude."

"And with my luck, that would have been the thing to get me busted," Chat snorted, "Not the dashing good looks, not the crush on Ladybug, and not the weird absences or awkward excuses...it would have been _cheese_."

Blue snorted too, "Yeah, that would have sucked."

Chat nodded, "Yup, it definitely would have stunk."

Blue groaned, "Really, dude? D*mn, you're going to be ten times worse after this, aren't you?"

Chat grinned.

"Great," he sighed, "Well, whatever, man. You can be a huge dork all you want, you'll always be my best bro."

Chat's kitten-eyes made an appearance at those words, and if asked he would assuredly deny the fact that his lower lip quivered ever-so-slightly, just as he would deny sniffling when he and Blue hugged it out on that quiet rooftop.

…

When the two boys returned to Fu's apartment, the girls were already waiting for them. Ladybug and Foxy Rouge had found their families were safe and sound, and there was nothing to imply that that would change anytime soon. (They had also spent the last several minutes texting each other without realizing it, and due to risk of certain information conflict, "Marinette" told "Alya" that she was safe at home, resolving to ask her parents to keep her "outing with Sarah" a secret if she had to.)

Everyone could see that Chat Noir was feeling much better, and that something was different between him and Peacock Blue. Sure, they were teammates, and, after realizing the bird-themed hero was not in any way a rival for Ladybug's affection, they'd even become good friends. Now, however, it was as if they had a small world of their own. It was a comforting sight, if a bit bewildering.

"So, I take it everyone's okay then?" Chat asked, noting how relaxed everyone else was.

"Yup, nothing weird around Alya or her family's apartment, and Ladybug came up clean at Marinette's," Foxy affirmed.

"That's great," Chat sighed.

Before anyone could say anything else, they were all startled as a spark of lavender light suddenly appeared over Sarah, releasing the Butterfly Kwami from his Miraculous once more.

"Oh, hello again, everyone," Nooroo greeted, seeming a little confused.

"What the-...?" Blue blinked.

"Sarah! Are you awake?!" Ladybug leaned in close, excited.

Unfortunately, the girl showed absolutely no sign of being conscious.

"...Sarah, you better not be fake-sleeping again," Chloe growled in warning.

"No, look at her eyes, she's dreaming," Foxy, hovering almost as closely as Laybug, pointed at the rapid movement behind the girl's eyelids, "Weird."

Ladybug pouted, "Seriously?"

Just as suddenly as he'd appeared, Nooroo vanished back into his Miraculous.

"Uh...guess she's dreaming about something else now..." Blue thought aloud.

"Well, that was random," Foxy chuckled.

" _Saaaaraaaah_ , _pleeeeeease_ wake _uuuuuuuup_ ," Ladybug complained, childishly pouting.

Foxy giggled at her antics.

"She'll wake up eventually," Chloe rolled her eyes, then she frowned at the sleeping girl, "If we're done here, I might as well drag her over to the hotel so _I_ can get some sleep."

Ladybug continued sulking, "...Sarah, I swear, if you don't hurry and wake up, I'm going to tell them without you..."

Despite the threat, the girl didn't even twitch.

"I mean it, I'm giving you five minutes, and then I'm dropping the mask," Ladybug swore, poking Sarah's cheek, then frowning when nothing changed. A light growl slipped out, "What do I have to do? Drop you on a cold rooftop again?"

"Again?" Foxy's eyebrows shot up.

Ladybug sat straight up, eyes wide, "Uh...did I say again? I meant, um..."

Chat snorted behind his hand, remembering a certain event from earlier that year. Noting his amusement, Ladybug narrowed her eyes at him, giving him a silent warning.

"Details, please~" Foxy flopped down on her stomach, chin propped up on the heels of her hands like a child waiting for a bedtime story.

Ladybug groaned, "It's hardly worth mentioning."

"It's the reason why we agreed breaking and entering is a bad idea," Chat smirked.

Foxy's jaw, as well as Blue's and Chloe's, dropped. Master Fu, silent in the background, merely blinked in surprise. Wayzz tilted his head, while Pollen was completely unfazed.

"Chat!" Ladybug hissed, "We also agreed not to speak of it again!"

"Well _you_ mentioned it," he told her smugly.

Ladybug growled at him, which only seemed to amuse him further. Seeing that he wasn't the least bit repentant, she gave up with a huff, "...in my defense, I was really mad about the Super Strong incident, and she was avoiding me like the plague..."

Foxy whistled, recalling the event. Blue winced along with her. Chloe was just confused.

"I know, I had to talk her out of spending the night in a broom closet," Chat chuckled.

Ladybug blinked at him, "...seriously?"

Foxy face-planted into the mattress, shaking with laughter. Blue and Chloe both gave her a weird look.

"Yup, you and Marinette both had her mortally terrified," Chat nodded, "I _tried_ to tell her that avoiding you was a bad idea...but, well, you know how she is."

Ladybug sighed, "...she was just _fine_ with running around during Akuma attacks, but if it's _me_ she runs for cover? Seriously?"

"Wait, so...did you break into her _bedroom_?" Foxy figured out, giving Ladybug an impressed look.

Ladybug cringed.

"While she was sleeping?" Foxy guessed again.

Ladybug buried her face in her hands.

"And you dragged her unconscious *ss out onto a rooftop, in the middle of winter?" Foxy pushed herself up, and crossed her arms in playful judgment.

"Whoa, spot on," Chat said in appreciation.

"I didn't want to wake up her parents, and she _wouldn't wake up_...and I regret it, I _really_ regret it, okay?" Ladybug squeaked.

"Come on, Bugaboo, it's pretty funny in hindsight," Chat patted her back.

"You had to use the Kitten Eyes on her. She was almost a Sarah-sicle," Ladybug grumbled.

"It was a learning experience," Chat insisted.

"She caught a cold, Chat."

"Yeah, I know," he cringed, "But just a _little_ one, and she wasn't mad about it...well, not about the kidnapping, anyway...she was more mad about the fact you two were fighting, when-..."

Chat's eyes glazed over, prompting concern from his friends.

"...Chat?" Ladybug asked quietly.

Blinking back into reality, he let out a weak laugh, "Sorry...I just...I just realized...she kept her promise..."

"What promise?" Foxy asked.

Ladybug's brow furrowed, then flew upward when she realized it.

"Sarah said...that if Hawkmoth ever Akumatized her, she was going after him," he smiled, but it was nowhere near as exuberant as it should have been, "I don't think either of us really expected it to happen though. I...I _am_ relieved she did..."

Ladybug dropped her head on his shoulder, huddling close. He gratefully accepted the gesture, leaning into her in return.

"That all seems so long ago," she commented quietly.

He let out a soft laugh, "Oh yes, back when Dopplebugs still roamed the Earth. Ancient History, fur sure."

She gave an amused "hum" in reply.

"I wasn't even Foxy Rouge yet," Foxy commented.

"I barely even knew Sarah back then," Blue added, "She was just an oddly awesome friend of a friend to me."

"What the h*ll is a _dopplebug_?" Chloe broke the chain of quiet reminiscing.

Everyone looked at her. Four teens shared a look, and then _laughed_. Chloe growled at them, irritated that she was missing so much of the recent conversation.

"That was Sarah's nickname, Chloe," Chat finally told her, "Because she pretended to be Ladybug? She was a _doppleganger_?"

"It sounds dumb to me," she decided.

Chat pouted, Blue snickered.

"Chat... _Adrien_..." Ladybug fixed him with a look, "...did _you_ give her that name?"

"It's a _great_ name..." he grumbled.

Chloe blinked, then silently groaned at the ceiling, much to Foxy's apparent amusement.

" _Sarah_ definitely liked it," Blue snorted.

"Sarah, please wake up, they aren't appreciating my artistic genius!" Chat complained.

"You're a bad influence on her, dude, she's constantly throwing bird puns at me," Blue complained, "She even said I had _eyes_ _like_ _a_ _Hawk_ in front of my girlfriend!"

Chat snickered behind his hand.

"Seriously, dude, how long have you been corrupting her?" Blue accused.

Chat let out a full laugh before trying to answer the question, "Well, er, right after she told me she knew...right after...um...she pretended to be Ladybug to cover for me?"

"She-what?" Ladybug sputtered.

"Yeah, um...that whole "multiple Ladybugs" stunt? That was actually...for my sake," Chat admitted, "We were sealed in the classroom...and she'd already figured out I was Chat Noir...so she created a diversion for me, so I could use Cataclysm and get out...that's why she did it..."

One could see when it clicked in each of their minds.

"Dude..." Blue breathed.

Ladybug face-palmed, muttering under her breath and groaning.

"Wait...so it _wasn't_ a planned diversion..." Foxy went over the details in her head.

"Nope, she improvised, without telling me _anything_ ," Ladybug huffed, "...at least it wasn't a bomb..."

Foxy snorted in amusement.

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you sooner, Milady," Chat continued, "I had to feign ignorance to keep my cover."

"No, I know, don't worry about it," she sighed, "...I'm...just as guilty of that..."

He nudged her shoulder, "We did what we had to, right?"

Ladybug gave him a small smile in response. She didn't want to lie to him anymore...and she was pretty sure those promised five minutes had slipped away a good several lines of dialogue ago. She'd deal with a pouty Sarah later, she was going to tell them.

Of course, first she had to lead up to it. She wasn't just going to drop her transformation out of the blue and leave poor Chat/Adrien startled witless, even if the look on Chloe's face would have been hilarious. No, she was going to do this dramatically, with style. She was an _artist_ , she was going to do this right.

Or, so she told herself. Her wonderfully creative mind decided to go blank-canvas on her. Sh*t, how was she supposed to tell the love of her life who she was?!

Wait, no, she was _not_ thinking of that right now. There was _way_ too much going on for her to be worrying about romance of all things. Ugh.

"Ladybug, _maybe_ you should stop poking her face," Foxy reached over to physically stop said action.

Realizing herself finally, Ladybug pulled back so she wouldn't be tempted further. Clearly Sarah was _not_ going to wake up, and Ladybug needed to get her head on straight so she could drop this ridiculous charade.

"Can I go home now?" Chloe complained.

"What's the rush?" Blue asked.

"It's late, I'm tired, and I'm bored out of my mind," she retorted.

"It's not _that_ late," Blue argued.

"If you have so much energy to spare, you can carry Sarah for me," Chloe inspected her nails.

Blue looked like he was going to argue, then he dropped it with a sigh, "...if I do, it's only because I have more _finesse_ than you do..."

"Spoken like a true mother-bird," Chat smirked.

"Bro, _noooo_ ," Blue groaned.

"Evillustrator!" Ladybug suddenly declared, smiling brightly.

Everyone blinked at her.

"Er, sorry, uh..." she coughed, embarrassed, "I, um, want to say something..."

"About _Nathaniel_?" Chloe raised a brow.

"Wow, you actually remembered his Akuma name?" Foxy blinked at her.

"I have an amazing memory, thank you very much!" Chloe humphed, "He attacked me with a blow drier, destroyed over half my room, tried to _squash_ me with a giant shoe, and almost took my head off with a saw blade!"

"Yes, yes, I know, I was _there_ ," Ladybug sighed, "But I'm not talking about Nathaniel, I'm talking about Marinette."

"Oh, yeah, didn't you say she helped you out that day?" Foxy recalled.

" _She_ did?" Chloe wrinkled her nose, "Let me guess, she was the _bait_."

"She was _what_?!" Blue squeaked.

"She wasn't in any danger," Ladybug told him quickly, "Nathaniel just wanted to go on a date with her, that's all."

"I _so_ knew it," Chloe rolled her eyes.

"She was awesome!" Chat grinned, "She yanked the pen right out of his hand, and...well, we _almost_ had him..."

Chloe held up a hand, silently telling him to shut up, which he did with an irritated frown, as she looked at Ladybug, "Your _point_?"

Ladybug looked to her partner, who looked back curiously.

"...remember how I said I was on a secret mission?" she asked, a little sheepish now.

"Oh~, this is going to be good, I can tell~" Foxy bounced.

"You going to tell me what you were up to, Bugaboo?" he challenged playfully.

"Oh, you know..." she shrugged as if it didn't matter, smirking a little, "...just a little _undercover_ action..."

"You've got my attention," he encouraged.

"Well, you see, it was one of those situations where I couldn't be in two places at once, and I had a _very_ important role to play as my civilian self," she teased.

"You going to tell me what that very important role _was_ , Bugaboo?" he returned.

She beckoned him closer, wanting his ear, which he willingly lent her, and quietly whispered into it, "Code Name: Princess."

The boy momentarily stopped breathing, and then whipped around to look at her, shock evident, "Y-...you're-...you're saying, you-..."

She ducked her head for a moment, then looked up with a shy smile, "How many heroes can a classroom hide, huh?"

He let out an amazed laugh, staring into her eyes as he pieced things together. Then his brow furrowed, "Wait, Sarah told me you went to another school..."

"She did?" Ladybug looked confused.

"Yeah, she-...was playing me, wasn't she?" he winced.

Ladybug giggled, "Well, she sort of had to, Kitty."

"Wait, you go to our school too?!" Blue gasped.

Ladybug smiled sheepishly, then blinked, "Wait... _our_ school?"

"Uh...well, the thing is..." he chuckled sheepishly.

"Wait, wait, _wait_!" Foxy stressed, eyes wide, "...we're...talking about the same school that Adrien and Chloe go to? _Both_ of _you_ go there too?"  
"Uh..." Ladybug looked between Foxy and Blue, "...apparently?"

"Uh-uh, no way..." Foxy gaped at them.

"So, uh, remember how I said Alya is really important to me...?" Blue hinted, rubbing the back of his neck.

A frog-like croaked escaped Foxy's throat.

"Er...are you okay?" Blue blinked.

"You...you..." her eyes were dangerously wide.

"Dude, did you see a ghost or something?" Blue's brow furrowed in concern.

" _Nino_?" Foxy finally gasped.

His eyes widened slightly, "Uh...yes?"

Foxy Rouge let out a blood curdling shriek, pointing at Peacock Blue as if he had a spider on his face. Blue screamed too, grabbing onto Chat, who was similarly frightened by Foxy's reaction and grabbed onto him as well.

"No, no, OH MY _GOD_!" Foxy pulled at her hair near her scalp, freaking out, "You-you-! YOU'RE MY _BOYFRIEND_?!"

Blue and Foxy stared at each other in shocked silence, while three other teens looked between them in utter astonishment. Fu discretely slipped out of the room.

"...Duusu-"

"Trixx!"

" **Transform me**."

As Alya and Nino were revealed, they continued staring at each other in shock. Duusu was wide-eyed with worry, while Trixx was leaning in as close as she dared, eyes practically sparkling with excitement.

"Alya..." Nino swallowed.

"N-Nino..." Alya sucked in a sharp breath.

"...well...uh...that explains a lot," Nino said simply, still wide-eyed.

"Oh God...we are the biggest idiots in the _history_ of idiots..." Alya groaned into her hands.

" _Eh_...maybe not so much..." Ladybug laughed nervously, taking all of this in as best she could, and wondering _how the h*ll she'd missed all this_.

Alya gave her an unimpressed look, "As _if_ you could top this."

Chat began inching slowly back behind Ladybug, fairly aware that all h*ll was about to break loose, and that being out of the line of fire, but still close enough to yank Ladybug back if things got too out of hand, was the wiser decision.

"...well..." Ladybug laughed again, nibbling at her bottom lip, hugging her knees and hiding her face a little, "...the thing is...apparently Mademoiselle Bustier's homeroom class has been harboring _five_ super-heroes...?"

"Five..." Alya blinked.

Three unmasked teens paused to count, and blinked.

"Wait, but that would mean..." Nino stared at Ladybug in confusion.

"...you'd think I would have figured out _why_ my three neighbors kept trying to run out the door at the same time as me..." Ladybug grinned sheepishly.

Three teens gaped at her.

"...Tikki, transform me," Ladybug finally said, cringing in preparation as the magic washed over her, leaving Marinette for all to see. Tikki looked around at the various reactions, somewhat worried but remaining calm.

More gaping, struggles to formulate words, and then outright screaming and some hair-pulling followed. Then the girls screamed some more, while Nino just appeared outright dazed. Marinette waited for the screaming to stop before hesitantly opening her eyes. Fu calmly returned, and took his seat again.

"...I-I'd say she topped us, Alya..." Nino stuttered.

" **YOU THINK**?!" Alya and Chloe both screeched.

Nino smiled sheepishly, hands raised in surrender.

Chat Noir hesitantly lifted his hands away from his ears, torn between staring at Marinette, who was apparently _Ladybug_ , and keeping an eye on the two girls who had a _slight_ tendency to act out when _freaked_ out (Ladybug/Marinette _might_ have been just as extreme, if not more so, but he wasn't exactly worried about _her_ tackling someone at the moment). When it occurred to him that he was the _only_ one still wearing a mask (and that it was hardly necessary at the moment), he quietly called off his transformation. Once free, Plagg immediately flopped down on Adrien's head, snickering at all the fuss.

Meanwhile, Marinette seemed to be utterly _fascinated_ with her knees.

"You...all this time...YOU!" Alya managed.

"...surprise," Marinette did a somewhat pathetic jazz hands, smiling uneasily.

This was most certainly _not_ how she'd expected her best friend to find out, and she was moderately terrified that Alya would bite her head off.

"How...how... _how_ did I miss that?!" Alya screamed at the floor, waving her hands by her ears as if that would help the situation.

"Alya, _seriously_? _I_ missed the fact that, one, Chat Noir sat in front of me. Two, that Sarah was _obviously_ tricking me when she made me believe you couldn't be Foxy. Three, that Nino was freaking obvious and _how the heck did I miss that_?!" Marinette smacked her palm against her cheek, and slowly dragged it down, "And if Chloe hadn't exposed herself in class _right in front of me_ I might have missed that too! God!"

"...there couldn't _possibly_ be _two_ superheroes hiding in the same classroom..." Alya groaned into her hands, " _Why_ didn't I question that reasoning when _Chloe_ blew it out of the water?"

Trixx struggled to stifle her laughter behind her paws, bowed over and rolling in the air.

"Why didn't _you_ question it? Why didn't _I_ question it?" Marinette pulled at her pig-tails, more and more freaked out the more she thought about it.

Tikki looked like she wanted to say something, but was afraid to trigger more upset.

"Fu, man..." Nino had no words, and just waved his hands helplessly. Duusu floated down to huddle against his neck, and Nino automatically patted her head reassuringly.

"You were not chosen because of who you went to class with. You were chosen because you were right for the Miraculous," Fu said simply, "And as you all have seen for yourselves, it is far too easy to miss what you do not understand, or to miss what others hide when you are also trying to hide a similar secret. It is also very easy to fail to notice the secrets that those closest to us hide."

Adrien flinched. Plagg said nothing, only burrowed himself more snuggly into the nest of blond hair.

"What about Sarah?" Nino changed the flow, eying Adrien in concern.

"We all see the world a little differently," Fu said, "Her perspective simply gave her the opportunity to notice, and fate placed her where she could see you."

"A _lot_ of opportunity..." Alya shook her head, blowing out a breathy raspberry as she processed, "Fate literally threw us at her face..."

Nino snorted, "The weird animosity between her and Marinette before, her being all buddy-buddy with Adrien and Alya at the most random times, her swearing up and down that _no one_ should _ever_ see me hanging out with her because it would "look suspicious"...and the whole thing with _Chloe_...dude, she's been _juggling_ us...like, some crazy circus performer... _dude_..."

"Her "meddling" was much appreciated," Fu's eyes sparked with amusement.

Snorts, and laughter followed that statement.

"...Sarah never told you..." Chloe said quietly, eyes wide, "...you all _saw_ me do that...that's how...you all knew..."

Pollen landed on Chloe's shoulder, silent and statute.

"...a certain someone wanted to protect your secret..." Marinette glanced at Adrien, smiling a little, "And since he apparently knew Sarah could "contact me", he asked her not to."

Chloe looked surprised, then looked to Adrien, "You...it was you?"

Adrien nodded, smiling.

"Yup, Sarah almost died after he gave her the puppy-eyes," Alya added.

Adrien looked sheepish, laughing softly as he began to remember several things about that incident. (Fortunately for him, no one noticed when he turned bright red, as he suddenly recalled Sarah teasing him about his "future wife"...and suddenly a whole bunch of things were making sense...)

"And thanks to _that_ ," Marinette continued, coughing a little at the reminder, "Sarah convinced me to pretend word didn't reach me, from her or anyone else..."

"Wow..." Nino scratched his head.

"You know, at the time I thought she was trying to convince Marinette not to tell Ladybug...to think she was trying to convince Ladybug to _pretend_ she didn't know..." Alya laughed.

"You could learn a thing or two from her illusion weaving, Alya," Trixx teased.

Alya wrinkled her nose at the Kwami, but then shook her head and laughed, "Maybe I'll have her train me instead of _you_ , Trixx."

"I'm not saying she could outfox _me_ , especially with that finger-crossing habit holding her back," Trixx pointed out, then frowned, "...she really needs to work on that..."

Alya rolled her eyes.

"...I'm glad," Marinette spoke up, looking at Chloe, "That Sarah convinced me to pretend not to know, Chloe...it helped me give you a chance to prove yourself...and...while some of the things you do honestly drive me crazy...it's like Sarah said, you've changed...the old Chloe wouldn't have run herself ragged for someone else's sake, or protect someone who wronged her, or worry about someone _else_ not receiving credit for their hard work...you might still be petty and mean, but you're a hero...and I'm _glad_ you're a part of this team. I'm sorry for the things I said before...it was unfair of me, and I was wrong. I might not always agree with the things you do, but you're an important part of this team, Chloe."

Chloe was stunned.

"Yeah, I knew you had it in you, Chloe," Adrien told her with a genuine smile.

Chloe squirmed a little, trying not to show just how much the sentiments touched her. There was a soft blush showing through the concealer on her cheeks.

"You're a royal pain," Alya huffed a little, but with no real animosity to it, "But you're _our_ royal pain, okay?"

"Took the words right out of my mouth, babe," Nino grinned at Alya.

Chloe hmphed, but they could tell it made her happy, even if she was too proud to admit it.

"...how is she still asleep after all that screaming?" Duusu questioned suddenly.

Everyone looked at Sarah.

Trixx flew down, and pulled up one of Sarah's eyelids, finding no evidence of consciousness, "...either she's one of the greatest actresses _I've_ ever seen, or she really _is_ just that heavy of a sleeper."

"Leave her face alone," Alya shooed her away.

"...Marinette?" Tikki quietly called the attention of her chosen.

"Tikki?" Marinette blinked, "What is it?"

"...I'm sorry I lied to you, Marinette," Tikki said, barely daring to look her chosen in the eye, "About Chat Noir, and Sarah, and a few other things...I'm sorry I deceived you."

"I'm not," Trixx piped up, seeming quite pleased with herself.

"Of _course_ you're not," Alya sassed, grabbing the Kwami in her hands before she could escape, and started roughing up the tiny fox's head-fur with her finger.

"NO NOOGIES!" the Kwami wailed, "THIS IS ABUSE!"

Plagg almost fell off Adrien's head, howling with laughter. Duusu clutched her own head reflexively, and ducked behind Nino, observing the "abuse" with a horrified expression.

Giggling softly at them, Marinette turned back to Tikki, and gently cupped her Kwami in her hands, "I trust you had your reasons, Tikki."

Tikki's eyes shone with happiness, and she shot forward to embrace Marinette's cheek, "I love you, Marinette!"

"I love you too, Tikki," Marinette cupped her tiny friend lovingly.

Adrien practically melted at the sight, finding it utterly adorable.

"You never give _me_ face-cuddles," Plagg griped at Adrien, floating down to frown at his chosen.

"Come're," Adrien offered with a big smile.

"I never said I wanted to!" Plagg retorted, crossing his arms and looking away.

Adrien gaped at him for a moment, then with a glare he grabbed Plagg out of the air, "Oh yeah?! Take _this_ then, you stinker!"

He began tickling Plagg, who yowled, "NOOOOO! THIS IS ABUSE! STOP IT!"

Trixx, recently having escaped her torture, pointed at him and laughed, "Ha ha! The tables have turned, foolish feline!"

"Go scream at a fish, you color-confused menace!" Plagg retorted, battling Adrien's fingers with all his might.

" _Rude_! And it's not _my_ fault earlier cultures had such a limited color vocabulary!"

"...are they _always_ like this?" Alya stage-whispered.

"Sometimes they're _worse_ ," Pollen answered.

Wayzz shrugged.

"Things are always lively with them around," Tikki giggled.

"They're so _loud_ ," Duusu whined, "How can Sarah _sleep_ through this?"

"You're probably the lightest sleeper I know, Duusu," Nino informed her, "You still complain about the ceiling fan being too loud."

"That's because it _is_!" Duusu insisted.

…

Chapter End

* * *

Okay, so, NINJAS...okay, so they're not REAL ninjas, but they're pretty dang close! Anyway, you're probably wondering how they knew to show up right then...let's just say Gabriel was prepared for SOMETHING to happen when he had five super-heroes (including his own bloody son) trying to stop him...and MAYBE his wedding ring is actually a super-spy-type ring, and he sent out an SOS almost as soon as Nooroo was taken. (Or maybe it's his shoes, idk.)

...and yes, I'm crazy for pulling this trick out of my conspiracy-theorist hat, thank you for noticing. ;P

And I regret that I wrote this before I knew about the floor thing...but, oh well, it probably wasn't something the "ninjas" could have easily utilized for a sneak attack anyway. Dropping in from the windows and busting in doors is WAY more effective...but, unfortunately for them, Foxy has enhanced hearing, so, HA! YOU FAIL, FAIL NINJAS!

...

I know it's been disproved that Master Fu gave Madam Agreste the Peacock Miraculous, but that's the idea in this AU, just so we're clear. She WAS a hero, just a low-key one (ironically enough, considering the whole PRIDE aspect). Hopefully all questions will be answered in time. ^_^

...

Lol, I wonder if you can guess where Adrien was headed, or WHO he was headed towards when his teammates called him back...let's just say, in his attempt to find out where the fight was going down, he was less than five minutes away from accidentally causing a HUGE uproar with his target's parents when they all found her MISSING. Someone got Lucky there, huh? ;P

Aaaaaand it MAY have been a good thing that he ran away from the mansion when he did...not saying why exactly, but I'm sure you can guess...

...

If you're wondering why Fu's neighbors haven't called the police, Fu disappeared briefly to call his neighbors and tell them, "Please excuse the noise. A spider was discovered in my home, and most unfortunately ALL of my visiting grandchildren have arachnophobia..."

Screaming is absolutely justified if there are spiders, arachnophobia or not. You really can't go wrong with this excuse, lol.

...

Er...so...in my VERY OLD original draft I had Sarah knocked out when the "ninjas" attacked, and she just HAPPENED to stay unconscious for maybe an hour...but certain research brought to light that no one should be KO'd for more than five minutes without something being SERIOUSLY wrong...stupid action movies, stop confusing people...so I ended up changing it to her passing out from exhaustion once she subconsciously realized "oh, we're safe now, I can nap time now..." and then just sleeping like a log, because otherwise I would have had to rewrite quite a bit of story that I REALLY liked...so, yeah. I almost gave her a concussion too, but I decided to be a little nicer...so, instead, she's just going to feel REALLY cruddy for a while, lol.

...

And yes, I've decided that Trixx's food of choice is Sardines, a common saltwater fish high in Omega 3s that swims in huge schools. Main reason: brain food, for a clever mind. Secondary reason: the taste and smell pretty much covers up anything else, like an illusion~, lol. Second secondary reason: fish swimming in large schools create great visual effects. Third secondary reason: the ocean depths they come from are the birthplace of deep thought, and concealed secrets... Forth secondary reason: we have the silly mental image of Trixx shrieking at a fish. You're welcome.

...

And speaking of fox shrieking...lol, Nino! She REALLY LOVES YOU! XD (Yes, I am a dork, BUT YOU LOVED IT TOO!)

...

Finally...BALANCING INTERACTIONS BEWTEEN FIVE SECRET-KEEPING TEENAGERS IS EXHAUSTING!

And I hope you enjoyed how the reveals went down, because I worked FREAKING HARD to get it all right, lol!


	11. Fear and Doubt

**DOUBLE UPDATE!**

SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG!

* * *

Chapter 11: Fear and Doubt

When Sarah came to, she found herself looking at Master Fu's ceiling. Momentarily confused, she started to sit up. That might have been a mistake, as she quickly discovered that her head, ribcage, neck, and pretty much everything else, hurt terribly.

"Sarah, hey! Take it easy, girl!" Alya's voice called out in concern.

She found herself being helped up into a seated position, surrounded by several worried faces.

Very much unmasked faces, and very much freely flying Kwamis.

"How are you feeling?" Marinette asked.

"Oh _God_ , I missed the reveals?!" Sarah looked between the five teens and their Kwamis in shock, "No fair!"

After the surprise wore off, the majority of the room _laughed_.

Huffing at the absolute _unfairness_ of it all, Sarah tried to regain her bearings, "Okay...so...whoa...it's starting to come back to me...crap...okay, everyone is here, so we're all okay...wait! Where's-?!"

Her pocket lit up, and Nooroo reappeared.

The lavender Kwami blinked awake, and smiled at her, "Ah, you look much better now, Mademoiselle!"

The surprise wore off, and Sarah smiled a little as she sighed in relief, "Okay, so everyone's here; everyone's okay...I guess I passed out, huh? How long was I out? Did I miss...um, _anything_ other than you guys all having the _big_ _revelation party_ without me?"

"You were asleep for less than an hour," Fu answered one of her questions.

"...the reveal thing just sort of happened," Alya admitted sheepishly, "Sorry you missed it. But in our _defense_...you sleep like the _dead_ , Sarah."

"They all screamed," Plagg added, " _Right_ next to your peacefully sleeping head."

"I missed the _screaming_..." Sarah groaned, ignoring the jabs, "I had so many awesome quips ready too!"

"Don't worry, they're still processing, so I'm sure you'll have _plenty_ of opportunities to tease them later," Trixx said helpfully.

Sarah sighed, "...still would have been nice to actually see their reactions after all the trouble I went through just so it wouldn't happen prematurely..."

"You did a wonderful job," an unfamiliar, green Kwami appeared before her, "And it is an honor to finally meet you, Mademoiselle McCoy. I am Wayzz."

Sarah brightened considerably, clearly delighted, "Oh! Hello, Wayzz! It's an honor to finally meet you as well!"

"...you do not seem surprised," Wayzz observed, tilting his head slightly.

Sarah started, realizing her too-honest reaction, then tried to bite back a grin, and failed.

Marinette face-palmed, while Alya laughed in disbelief.

"Wait...so you knew about Master Fu too?" Adrien blinked owlishly, "How?"

"Well...did anyone tell you I'm a regular customer?" Sarah chuckled sheepishly, "Marinette recommended him back when Pollen's training first started, and I've been coming here all the time since."

"Wish someone could have told me _that_ sooner...wait..." Nino cringed, "...did you figure it out _before_ , or _after_ you caught me walking out of here?"

"Sorry, Nino, but Master Fu doesn't _do_ acupuncture," Sarah giggled, "So, yes, you tipped me off that something was up, and I picked up the pieces from there, sorry."

Nino's jaw dropped, then he groaned, " _Seriously_? You had me rambling about how great needles were, and he doesn't even... _dude_!"

Sarah laughed, and though she struggled to stifle a cough it triggered she remained amused.

"Ooh~," Alya snickered, "Sounds like someone got McCoyed~!"

"Sa~la~mi~," Sarah chimed.

"Oh shush," Alya pouted, shooing at a snickering Trixx.

"Salami?" Marinette asked.

"Salami helped me figure out who Foxy was," Sarah shrugged, still grinning widely, "Curiosity killed the Fox, apparently."

Alya groaned, looking to the ceiling as if it could console her.

"So "salami" let the Fox out of the bag?" Adrien couldn't stop himself.

"Yup!" Sarah replied cheerily.

"God, you are never going to let that go, are you?" Alya covered her face and shook her head.

"You compared a mystical, magical Kwami to a common luncheon meat. I will be laughing till I'm old and senile," Sarah informed her.

" _Why_ did I say salami, _why_?" Alya groaned.

"I'm almost afraid to ask," Marinette wore a bemused smile.

"I'll tell you later," Alya promised, finally dragging her hands off her face.

Sarah noticed Chloe looking rather irritated and put out, and grew concerned, "Um...Chloe?"

"...so, you were just messing with me about Fu..." Chloe muttered.

"What?" Sarah asked, not sure what the blond was talking about.

"Oh, she was hoping to rub it in your face that she suspected Fu before you did," Alya commented helpfully.

Chloe hmphed, refusing to look at Sarah, "I _told_ you I thought he was strange, and you kept insisting I was being ridiculous!"

Sarah turned very, very red.

Alya gaped at her reaction, and burst out laughing, "Oh my god, are you _serious_?"

Chloe turned to look, and noted that Sarah had buried her face in her hands. Slowly, Chloe grinned, "You _didn't_ know..."

"Shut up!" Sarah retorted, "It wasn't _that_ obvious!"

"Hah!" Chloe crowed in victory, "I was suspicious of him before you ever were! I probably even helped you figure it out!"

"I _didn't_ suspect him because of _that_..." Sarah muttered.

"Admit it! I was right!" Chloe crossed her arms, extremely pleased with herself, "And _you_ were _wrong_!"

Sarah refused to look at her, and mumbled under her breath.

"What was that?" Chloe taunted, holding a hand to her ear.

"...you...were _right_..." Sarah ground out, "...I was... _wrong_..."

"And don't you ever forget it," Chloe told her haughtily.

Sarah groaned, dropping her face into her hands.

"Karma bites everyone, Sarah," Trixx told her.

"I know it does..." Sarah sighed, " _Maybe_ I lorded over people a few too many times..."

Alya snickered, "Maybe, huh?"

"Shush," Sarah pout-frowned at her in irritation.

"You just got owned by _Chloe_ , at _your_ greatest talent, nosy-nose," Alya smirked, "I have every right to laugh until I'm old and senile."

Sarah groaned into her hands. Turnabout was fair-play, but she didn't have to be happy about it.

" _Enough_ gibber-jabber!" Pollen snapped as she popped up in front of Sarah, clearly displeased, "Master Fu has made you this brew, so drink it! You need to heal up so we can get back to your training!"

"Y-yes, Pollen..." Sarah flinched, hastily taking the cup the Kwami had pointed to.

Nooroo quickly and discretely hid behind Fu, just as Duusu ducked behind Nino.

"No one from _my_ hive is allowed to appear so pathetic! You're not a prissy little _princess_ , you're a _soldier_ , so _act_ like it!" Pollen ranted.

"Sorry, Pollen," Sarah cringed, taking the first sip of the now lukewarm brew, and struggling not to grimace at the taste.

She sure as heck wasn't going to argue that her name literally _meant_ "princess". Any back-talk at all was a _horrible_ idea when Pollen was concerned.

Pollen seemed to cool down a little when Sarah finally downed the cup, but she still seemed angry. Sarah couldn't blame her. Her little teacher had had no choice but to _watch_ as her pupil was pinned like a bug, strangled like a useless rag-doll, tossed around a little more for added insult, and _then_ she'd passed out. It was only natural for Pollen to be upset.

She really hoped Plagg wouldn't share all the details of her miserable attempts at fending off Hawkmoth before that. If Bee hadn't busted through the window when she had...Sarah didn't want to think about it.

"Sarah isn't a fighter, Pollen," Marinette spoke up.

"I will _make_ her a fighter!" Pollen snapped, furious azure gems narrowed at startled ocean-blue eyes.

Tikki quickly flew into their line of sight, holding her arms up in a request for peace as she spoke to the Kwami, "We have no doubt you will, Pollen."

Then Tikki turned to Marinette, "She means well, Marinette."

"But Sarah shouldn't _have_ to fight," Marinette spoke her heart.

Sarah knew this came from compassion, and it was probably more than fair for Marinette to think that way, but it was disheartening to know Marinette still had little to no faith in her abilities.

"...I could move back to Ireland."

For a moment, you could have heard a pin drop.

"...Chloe really doesn't need a baby-sitter anymore, she's a big girl now," Sarah attempted to joke, but it came out depressing instead.

"Y-you haven't finished your training!" Chloe snapped, "You're staying _right_ here until you're finished, you _got_ that, slacker?!"

"I'm a dead-weight," Sarah retorted, refusing to look at anyone, "You don't need me holding you back. Not if you've got some crazy secret organization out to get you guys...it's probably useless for me to stick around anyway, so, really, it's probably better if I make myself scarce..."

"So, you're running away?" Pollen asked testily.

Sarah closed her eyes, "...you didn't see just how badly I screwed up before you guys got there. I had a _Miraculous_ to help me, and I couldn't even use it right...I wasted Cataclysm on my yo-yo because I'm an idiot who didn't listen..."

"I told you to _stall_ , kid," Plagg interjected, "You did that."

Sarah looked up, startled.

"I wasted Cataclysm on a football goal my first time," Adrien threw in, "And sometimes it's a _good_ idea not to listen to what Plagg says..."

"Rude! My advice is _always_ the best!" Plagg retorted.

"He was right about the yo-yo being a bad idea on my ring hand..." Sarah muttered, looking down again, "On the bright side, I can't screw up with a yo-yo anymore because I turned mine into a tiny pile of ash..."

"Hawkmoth caught your yo-yo?" Trixx inquired.

Sarah jolted slightly, then sighed, "...I was spinning it to fend him off...he sent a bunch of butterflies in my face...he tangled the string around his Cane..."

Sarah shuddered, "...I didn't react fast enough...for anything other than destroying the yo-yo...it was the only way to keep the ring away from him for even a little while longer...if you guys hadn't shown up when you did..."

"I told you to give up the ring," Plagg huffed.

"AS IF I COULD DO THAT!" Sarah snapped, shooting a furious glare his way.

"I would have been _fine_ , you worry-wart," Plagg huffed again, "I was out of power, and you had someone tracking that phone-"

"I didn't _know_ about the phone," Sarah retorted.

"-so, they would have had a lead, and Hawkmoth would have left you alone."

"Since when are you such a hopeful optimist?!" Sarah demanded.

"Better that than the alternative," Plagg shrugged, looking away.

"I wasn't going to just let him take you," Sarah growled.

"There are worse things than losing a Miraculous, kid," Plagg gave her a hard look.

Sarah faltered.

Plagg looked away.

"What he's _trying_ to say," Tikki interrupted gently, "Is that none of us want to see you hurt, Sarah."

"...then maybe it really is better if I take a step back," Sarah spoke softly, "I'm reckless enough I'd jump into a _viper_ _pit_ to help you guys..."

"... _Ladybug_ jumped into a T-Rex's mouth..." Adrien muttered.

"I knew what I was doing!" Marinette defended.

"It still gave me gray hairs, _look_ ," Adrien threw back, pulling at his hair as if to show off the metaphoric gray hairs.

Marinette frown-pouted at him.

"And you give everyone _else_ gray hairs, bro," Nino stated.

"My point is," Adrien ignored the shot, "All of us are pretty reckless, Sarah. And if this was a contest, you would not be winning."

"...are you trying to _worry_ me into staying?" Sarah gave him an exasperated look.

"Is it working?" Adrien asked.

Sarah groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose before speaking, "...much as I'd like to watch over you guys like an anxious mother-hawk, you crazy Cuckoos have already long outgrown me and left the nest. You guys don't need a referee in class anymore to keep you from discovering each other's identities, and Akumas aren't an issue anymore, and...I just don't know how I could help you with whatever comes next...and I don't want you guys worrying over me when you have bigger things to deal with."

"I'd worry more if you were in Ireland," Nino told her seriously, "We can't protect you there, and the bad guys know you're connected to over half of us. You'd be an easy target."

"If they want to use me, they could just as easily go after my family to draw me out," Sarah argued, "I'm just as much a liability here as I am in Ireland, but if I'm in Ireland I'll seem at least a little less interesting."

" _Now_ who's the hopeful optimist?" Plagg humphed.

Sarah shot him a glare.

"If you wish to keep your family safe from the enemy, you will require further training," Fu spoke, reminding everyone of his presence.

"...Fu's right..." Marinette agreed slowly, closing her eyes as if pained, "...if you're going to be targeted, you need to be prepared."

Adrien reached over and squeezed Marinette's shoulder, knowing full well that Marinette was still blaming herself for involving Sarah in their problems.

"So, you're going to stay and train!" Chloe asserted with finality, crossing her arms at Sarah.

"But would that really help?" Sarah refused to look up, "I'm _hopeless_. I'm not like _you_ , Chloe. I can't turn into a warrior overnight like you did. I've _proven_ time and time again that I'm no good at fighting!"

"You'll never learn if you keep up _that_ attitude!" Pollen snapped, "How am I supposed to train you if you won't give it your all?! You're letting doubt hold you back!"

Sarah looked dangerously close to crying, "...I'm sorry..."

"I don't want _apologies,_ I want _results_! You're _my_ pupil until I say so! So, straighten up and show me that backbone you're hiding in there somewhere!" Pollen scolded, "Look at me, soldier!"

Sarah inhaled sharply, and looked up with sad eyes, "...I don't want to disappoint you anymore, Pollen..."

"Then don't," Pollen replied, "You're still young. I can work with that."

Sarah was surprised, but still looked uncertain.

"We do need you, Sarah," Nino said, surprising the girl again, "You didn't just keep us from blowing our covers to each other. You've been supporting us like _crazy_...I-I mean, who is _Duusu_ going to cry to if you run off into the sunset?"

"She'd stop crying if you'd be more careful with her Marzipan," Sarah smiled a little, seeing right through the excuse.

"The Hamster still needs your help too," Alya added.

Marinette gave her a startled look, "Wh-what?"

"Exnay on the Amsterhey!" Nino hissed.

Sarah face-palmed, "It's official, we need a new code name now...I _told_ you not to tell him, Alya."

Alya cringed sheepishly. Nino frowned unhappily at Sarah.

"What do you three have a codeword for?" Adrien pouted.

"N-no reason!" Nino waved his hands.

"Nino, calm down, we'll just be more careful with the next code name," Sarah told him.

"You..." Marinette turned bright red, having figured it out.

"Told you the name was obvious," Alya snickered at Sarah.

"Only because Nino _made_ it obvious," Sarah snickered.

"Hey!" Nino looked affronted.

"Do you know what they're talking about?" Adrien looked at Marinette.

"N-no!" Marinette squeaked, "I-I mean, I'm not sure, um, but, uh... _pleasedon'task_!"

"Sorry, Kitty-cat, I'll tell you when you're older," Sarah smiled sweetly.

Adrien looked somewhat insulted, but, for poor flustered Marinette's sake, he let it go. Instead he glared at his laughing Kwami.

"As if you'd know what they're talking about," Adrien grumbled.

Plagg just kept snickering.

"Anyway, yeah, the Hamster still needs you," Alya returned to the point.

Marinette glared at her, her eyes promising a retort when a certain audience wasn't around to hear it.

"Probably..." Sarah bit her lip, but her eyes were smiling.

"And you _can't_ leave me alone with this cheese-hog, Sarah," Adrien gave her the kitten-eyes, which were cute and not _nearly_ as devastating as the puppy-eyes.

"More like she can't leave _me_ alone with a hopeless _fanboy_ like you," Plagg smirked.

Adrien stiffened, and ever-so-slowly looked over at Marinette. He found her looking in the opposite direction, hand over her mouth, and red to her ears.

"...oh God...you knew I was..." Adrien flushed, and looked away.

"All of Paris knew, dude," Nino quipped.

"Not helping!" Adrien hissed.

"...yeah, I definitely can't leave Plagg alone with you," Sarah teased.

Adrien gave her a wounded look, pouting dangerously.

"Come on, I think she was happy you thought so much of her," Sarah told him, "She'll probably say so herself when she remembers how to breath."

"What?" Adrien looked surprised, then turned to Marinette, "Are you okay?"

Marinette squeaked, startled.

"Oh _honestly_!" Chloe tossed up her hands.

"Easy," Sarah told her, "She's still Ladybug."

Chloe groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose, " _Marinette_ is Ladybug, _Chat_ is Adrien... _what_ did I ever do to deserve this..."

"Careful, someone might answer that," Alya snarked.

"You know you love Chat Noir, Chloe," Sarah teased.

"I thought Adrien had matured _past_ such silliness!" Chloe complained.

"If you can't love the clown, get out of town," Sarah told her gleefully.

"Sometimes, you're _worse_ ," Chloe narrowed her eyes at her.

"If I don't give him fair competition, he'll get rusty!" Sarah feigned deep concern.

" _Let_ him get rusty," Plagg quipped.

"Hey!" Adrien looked affronted.

"Don't worry, Adrien, one day we'll make them see the light," Sarah said with dramatic enthusiasm.

Adrien smiled.

"Sooooo...you're staying in Paris?" Nino said it.

Sarah sighed in defeat, smiling softly.

"...Sabrina would have missed you if you left..." Chloe threw out.

Sarah's eyes went wide, and she whirled on Chloe, " _Please_ tell me you let her know we were okay."

"I told her!" Chloe defended quickly, but then her eyes slid away, "...though perhaps I could give her _another_ update, since I'm feeling generous..."

"Please do, I still don't have my phone..." Sarah cringed.

Chloe took a picture of Sarah.

"Hey!" Sarah gaped at her.

"She wanted to know if you were alive," Chloe said off-handedly, still texting, "I figured a picture would explain it better."

"I have a feeling I look worse than when you put me through that "ugly make-over", please delete it," Sarah grimaced.

"I'm not keeping it, if _that's_ what you're worried about. I have better taste than that," Chloe finished texting and put her phone away.

Sarah rolled her eyes, opting not to comment.

"...I would be sad if you left," Marinette admitted, "Please promise you'll stay."

Sarah looked at her in surprise.

"For real, we don't want you to go," Alya added.

"...I didn't want to go either..." Sarah said meekly, red in the face now, "...and...I guess you guys have proved it would be a bad idea anyway...so...it looks like I should go through with my original plan and graduate here...sound good?"

Several relieved smiles answered an easy "yes".

"Thank goodness! You're my only hope for making sure this boy goes to bed at a reasonable hour!" Duusu announced.

"Hey!" Nino complained.

"Well, Peacocks need their beauty sleep, Nino," Sarah giggled.

"I don't stay up that late!" Nino complained.

"Except for when you do," Sarah shrugged, "Though in your defense, Chloe's the only one of us who actually goes to bed at a decent hour every night."

Chloe gave the others a "more superior than thou" look.

"...of course, Master Fu probably does too," Sarah added.

Chloe's grin slipped. The other four snickered.

"Yes, sleep is very important," Fu stroked his beard thoughtfully, "But perhaps we should concern ourselves more with where one of us should rest his head."

Every teen in the room blinked.

"Where are we sleeping, kid?" Plagg asked Adrien.

Adrien looked surprised, then looked down.

"You can stay at the hotel," Chloe stated, "That's easy enough."

"Thanks, Chloe," Adrien told her, though he didn't look up.

"Slumber Party?" Nino suggested.

Adrien looked up in surprise.

"Boys only?" Alya asked.

"As long as you bring Camembert, I don't care," Plagg stated.

Adrien was smiling as he turned to Chloe, "Will that be okay, Chloe?"

Chloe couldn't say no to that face, "...fine, but if I find you and Marinette snuggling in a corner or something we're going to have a problem."

Marinette squeaked, "CHLOE!"

Adrien and Marinette refused to look at each other, both a brilliant shade of red.

"Yeah, he needs to take you to dinner first, Marinette," Alya gave Chloe a challenging look.

Chloe hmphed, sticking her nose in the air.

"If I could avoid having my Aunt see me looking like the apocalypse, that would be great," Sarah changed the subject, "Have room for one more?"

"Just as long as you don't tell us when to go to bed," Nino challenged playfully.

Sarah tapped her chin thoughtfully, then turned to Chloe, "Do you have sound cancelers and sleep masks in Kwami size at the hotel?"

"I wouldn't know," Chloe said as if it should be obvious.

"If not, I could make some," Marinette offered.

"Great, I'm sure Duusu would appreciate it," Sarah told her.

"Can you make them aesthetically pleasing?" Duusu asked Marinette.

"I'll do my best," Marinette promised.

Duusu made a happy noise. Marinette giggled at the cuteness.

"Okay, if Duusu is taken care of, then I can promise I won't be grumpy about your sleeping habits for _one_ night," Sarah teased Nino.

"Thank you, oh wise Mother Sarah," Nino sassed.

"You're welcome, baby-bird," Sarah smiled sweetly.

Adrien smirked at Nino.

"I _so_ blame you for corrupting her," Nino informed him.

"I'm stealing that one," Alya told Sarah.

"I give you my maternal blessing, sweet Alya, he's all yours," Sarah said dramatically.

Alya looked torn between laughter and mortification.

Nino dropped his face in his hands with a groan, "I swear, you're _just_ as bad as an actual mom..."

"Yet he nags even more than I do," Sarah stage whispered to Alya.

Alya snorted into her hand.

"I do not!" Nino protested.

"He is a challenging child, but please take care of him, my darling Alya," Sarah continued the theatrics.

"Somebody _stop_ her," Nino pleaded, "I'm too young to be married off!"

"Well, if you have parental consent..." Trixx supplied.

Alya shot her a well-deserved glare.

"He is not _ready_ to leave the nest yet!" Duusu defended, clinging to the front of her chosen's shirt protectively. It was honestly too cute.

"Alright, alright, I trust your judgment, Duusu," Sarah stifled a laugh, grinning at Nino, "You're off the hook...for now."

"Duusu, have I told you lately how much I love you?" Nino said.

"You could stand to say it more often," Duusu happily nuzzled the boy's cheek.

Okay, that was seriously just way too freaking adorable.

"Ah, before you all leave there is something I-ah..." Fu groaned as he stopped trying to stand, and pressed a hand against his lower back, making a face as he lowered himself back down, "Perhaps I stood too quickly..."

"What is it, Master Fu?" Marinette asked.

Fu seemed to consider something, "I have something I would like to share with you all, but I am afraid I cannot stand at the moment...and the surprise will lessen if I send one of you five to find it for me..."

Sarah winced, realizing what he meant, "Um...would you like for _me_ to go get it for you?"

"Oh," Fu brightened, "I would much appreciate it, Mademoiselle McCoy. Wayzz will guide you."

Wayzz flew over to Sarah, who stood slowly, and followed the Kwami across the room without another word. Once she closed a door behind her, however, Sarah sighed.

"Is everything alright?" Wayzz asked.

Sarah smiled, "Where are we looking?"

"Ah, follow me," Wayzz drifted down the hallway.

Sarah followed him to a small kitchen, where the Kwami began to look around uncertainly.

"Uh...was it here...?" Wayzz flew up to a cabinet.

Sarah opened it, and watched as the Kwami scanned the contents.

"Hmm...no, it's not in here..." Wayzz looked thoughtful, and looked around the room. Then he drifted to another cabinet, "Perhaps this one...?"

"What exactly are we looking for?" Sarah asked, opening it for him.

"Hmm..." he looked over the inside of the cabinet slowly, "No, it's not here either..."

Sarah frowned as she watched the Kwami pick a drawer next.

"Well?" Sarah asked, opening the drawer for him.

"Oh, sorry, Mademoiselle McCoy, what was your question?" the Kwami paused his search to look at her.

"...you know, if they need a moment to talk without a non-wielder listening, I don't really mind..." Sarah told him.

Wayzz blinked, "Master Fu did not mean to exclude you, Mademoiselle-"

"No, it's okay, really," she offered a small smile, "I managed to get myself tangled up in all this, and somehow I managed to be helpful...but in the end, I'm not really supposed to be here. I'm not a wielder. You guys have secrets I should never know about. That's _okay_."

"You still wish to know," Wayzz said.

Sarah rolled her eyes, "Maybe, but I don't _need_ to know."

"Perhaps, perhaps not," the Kwami replied.

"If I need to know, I'm sure one of you will tell me," Sarah said, "...though, maybe knowing a Kwami can't touch their Miraculous could have been nice to know sooner..."

"We can't touch _any_ Miraculous," Wayzz supplied.

"Why?" Sarah asked.

"I do not mind telling you, but it is a rather lengthy story, so perhaps another time would be better," Wayzz explained.

"It's not something I shouldn't know?" Sarah asked.

"If I promise to tell you another time, will you promise to be there to listen?" he asked.

Sarah blinked, then eyed the Kwami with playful suspicion, "...I have a feeling I should be careful answering that."

Wayzz tilted his head, "Why is that?"

"I might not know you very well yet, but I have a sneaking suspicion you're up to something," Sarah considered him.

"What could I be up to?" he questioned.

"I'd rather you tell me," Sarah smirked.

"If I do not know, then how can I tell you?" he asked.

"But if you do know, then you can tell me," she responded.

"If I did, then I could," he agreed.

"But would you if you could?" she inquired.

"Perhaps," he said.

"...you're just going to keep replying with open-ended answers until I give up, aren't you?" Sarah side-frowned.

"If I was doing so, then possibly," the Kwami affirmed.

Sarah sighed, "You're a tough nut to crack..."

"Speaking of nuts, I prefer Acorns," Wayzz told her.

"...noted," Sarah chuckled, "And sorry to ask...but have you ever had problems with squirrels because of that?"

The Kwami's expression darkened, "We do not speak of the squirrels."

"Rodents are evil," Sarah nodded.

"Not...evil...just...not good," the Kwami amended.

"Uh-huh," Sarah didn't sound convinced.

"They have their place in the balance of things...I just do not appreciate their thievery of another's gatherings," Wayzz asserted.

"Or how they stare at you with those dark, beady little eyes," Sarah shuddered.

"They cannot help the way they look...though perhaps they could learn not to stare," Wayzz agreed.

"Are you sure they're not evil?" Sarah questioned.

The Kwami opened his mouth, but changed his mind and shrugged. Sarah giggled.

"...how long are you supposed to stall me?" Sarah inquired after a moment.

"I am not certai-"

Some angry yelling could be heard, and though the words were beyond distinguishing, Sarah would know Chloe's screech anywhere.

"...maybe a little longer than I anticipated," Wayzz sighed.

"...I know I'm not supposed to ask, but..." Sarah looked worried.

"Patience, Master Fu knows what he's doing," Wayzz told her, "And I will know when they are ready for us to return."

Sarah frowned, but as she listened the shouting began to subside.

"...would you know if one of them strangled one of the others?" Sarah asked, only half joking.

"They're fine, Mademoiselle McCoy," Wayzz assured her, "There is no need to worry."

"It's kind of my job to...worry..." Sarah faltered at the end of her statement, suddenly uncertain.

"Yes, I suppose it _is_ your job," Wayzz encouraged, eyes kind.

"...I can't protect them though," Sarah said softly.

"You can do more than you might think," Wayzz told her, "Did you ever believe you could unmask Hawkmoth, and recover the Butterfly Miraculous?"

Sarah winced, "Uh...well, I can't say anything for the time I was Akumatized earlier today, but probably not..."

"Mademoiselle McCoy?"

"Can I persuade you to drop the honorifics, and just call me "Sarah"?" Sarah asked.

"...Sarah, do you wish to talk about it?" he asked.

"...I...I helped end Hawkmoth's reign of terror, and Nooroo is safe now...all I ever wanted was to help Paris's heroes, and see Hawkmoth stopped...that was all I wanted..."

"...the reality was not as grand as you had hoped."

Sarah shook her head, "...I was so thrilled, seeing the bad-guy caught...and I was even given the honor of removing his Miraculous...which, in hindsight, was probably for the best..."

"You regret it?" Wayzz asked, noting the unshed tears.

She let out a laugh, but it sounded more like a sob, "He told me I'd regret it...I hate that he's right...I hate that Hawkmoth had to be Adrien's father...I really, really hate it..."

"It is a tragedy, one none of us were prepared for," Wayzz said, "But painful as the truth may be, it is thanks to you that we can see the situation more clearly, and find a way to restore the balance."

"...part of me just wishes I hadn't called Adrien; hadn't let him see it," Sarah hugged herself, "But if I hadn't...he would still be sitting at home alone, terrified that Hawkmoth had won...and if Adrien hadn't seen the truth with his own eyes, it would have been so hard to explain it to him..."

Wayzz nodded, listening.

"But still...it hurts," Sarah told him, "I tried to help, I led them to Hawkmoth, I called Adrien so he could see it all, and I even unmasked the villain myself...and even though I can't think of any way I could have...there was probably nothing else I could have done...but...I feel so _guilty_...I'm so scared Adrien will resent me, even if it's just a little...and I...I just wish I hadn't been the reason why he's hurting now..."

"You care about him," Wayzz said.

Sarah laughed, "Him and the _other_ four knuckleheads you and Fu decided to throw my way."

Wayzz smiled, "Fate had it's ideas. We simply trusted it to lead us down the right path."

Her smile faded, as she considered something, "...fate choose Adrien as Chat Noir? Even though..."

Wayzz nodded solemnly, "I do not know why fate led us to the son of the one we wished to stop, but perhaps time will tell why it did."

"Fate owes me an explanation, big time," Sarah crossed her arms, raising her chin in defiance as she smiled softly at her joke, "I can't have it hurting my friends just on a whim, you know?"

The Kwami's eye's seemed to sparkle with the way he smiled, "Fate would be a fool to displease someone with such a strong desire to protect."

She blinked, then laughed, "Not that I could actually do anything about it, but thanks."

Seeming pleased that her mood had lightened, Wayzz nodded. Then he perked, as if hearing a call she herself could not.

"I think it's time for us to return to the others," he told her, still smiling.

"Oh, okay...do I still need to bring that thing Fu asked for?" she asked.

"Let us just say it could not be found," he told her, just a smidgen smug.

"Whoops, I should have seen that coming," she laughed.

She followed him back the way they'd come, mentally preparing herself to play the sheepish child that had earnestly been looking for something but hadn't found it. However, as she entered the room, her speech died on her tongue.

Why was everyone smiling at her? Literally everyone in the room was looking at her with this sort of expectant, proud, or even mischievous grin.

Could you blame her if she blinked repeatedly, then, when nothing changed, took a step back, closed and reopened the door, as if it would clarify the situation?

"Girl, get in here," Alya laughed.

As Marinette's best friend, Alya was _quite_ experienced with this sort of nonsensical behavior, thus she was the first one to recover from the confusion.

"Y-you guys are up to something..." Sarah frowned, tentatively entering the room at last.

Well, at least Adrien was beaming with joy, for whatever reason. And for the moment, the darker thoughts that plagued them all seemed to be far away. Maybe she shouldn't complain.

"I'm betting you're a screamer," Plagg said before she could sit down.

"Plagg!" Adrien hissed.

Oh boy.

"Okay, somebody talk," Sarah sat down with a flop (doing her best not to cringe and hiss as she did so), crossing her arms as she eyed them all in suspicion.

Fu cleared his throat, and she turned her focus to him.

"...it has been a long time since all the Kwami under my protection have been together like this," Fu said, "There was a time when I feared I would never see it again."

Sarah listened with a gentle smile.

"Do you know why I am the Guardian?" Fu asked.

Surprised, Sarah simply shrugged.

"I am the Guardian because I keep the seven Miraculouses safe from those who would abuse their powers," Fu told her, "I ensure that the balance is maintained between their powers, and that they are used for the good of the world. It is no small job, by any means."

Sarah nodded.

"Under normal circumstances...I would say that there is no need for me to retire yet," Fu said, and Sarah's eyes went wide, "However...I sense a storm on the horizon, so perhaps it would be best to find another who could withstand it better than I."

"...a new Wielder for Wayzz?" Sarah asked weakly, looking between the Kwami and Fu in concern.

Wayzz nodded, "We both feel it is time for a new Guardian to be mentored."

"... _please_ tell me it's not someone from my class again," Sarah said, partially joking in an attempt to lighten the mood.

There were a few coughs and strangled sounds (followed by a few hisses at Plagg and Trixx for snickering), but Sarah didn't bother to look their directions. Instead she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, "...tell me you're joking. Just...do you have _any_ idea how _difficult_ it is to keep people from wondering why _five_ people suddenly skip class at the same time? I mean, not that we're probably going to have as much of an issue with that happening now that Akumas are out of the equation, but...are you _serious_?"

"I assure you, Mademoiselle, I did not choose the current wielders based on where they went to school," Fu informed her, "I chose them because they are worthy."

Sarah sighed, "... _fate_ decided to put them all in the same classroom, right?"

Fu nodded. Wayzz smiled.

"Just my luck, I guess," Sarah offered a rye smile, then sighed again, "So...you gonna tell me who the next Wielder is, or am I going to have to figure it out on my own again?"

She resisted the temptation to glare at Plagg, who was still snickering. Trixx was easier to ignore.

"You _can't_ be serious," Chloe said.

Sarah looked at her in confusion.

Chin raised in challenge, eyes knowing _something_ , Chloe frowned at her, "There's no one else as irritatingly meddlesome as _you_."

"Yes, thank you for that, Chloe," Sarah dead-panned.

"Don't play _coy_ , McCoy," Nino crossed his arms with a hint of a smirk, head tilted in slight sass.

"Okay..." Sarah looked between him and Chloe as if they might be mentally confused.

Instead of asking if she was missing something here, Sarah found herself swallowing heavily, and her mouth felt dry. There was an anxious flutter in her stomach, but she was afraid to give it a name.

"Honestly! We're talking about _you_!" Chloe seemed frustrated.

"Yes, you're talking about me, I noticed!" Sarah snapped.

Chloe blinked. Nino looked startled too, worry creeping into his brow.

Sarah looked away, "Uh...s-so is it going to be Max? He's certainly smart enough, and I think he'd take the role seriously. He doesn't have much interest in athletics, so he's a little behind on a proper physical condition to be fighting, and-"

"It's not Max," Marinette corrected, though not unkindly.

"Uh, Alix? She's brave, strong, and fast. A bit temperamental and impulsive, but she's smart and-"

"Sarah," Alya interrupted gently.

"Uh, um, oh! Mademoiselle Bustier, right?! I was just assuming it would be a student, but I can totally see-"

"Breath, Sarah, breath," Adrien reminded her, reaching over to lightly touch her lower arm.

Sarah tried, but she was still panicking.

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Chloe looked her up and down in bewilderment.

"Chloe!" Marinette hissed.

"I, uh...IforgotIgottagocallmyauntnowbye!" Sarah scrambled to her feet, making a break for the nearest door.

"Sarah, wai-!"

Sarah forgot which way the door opened, and her head smacked the surface with a painful thump.

"Ow, ow, ow..." Sarah fell into a crouch, clutching her head.

 **"Are you okay?!"** at least three voices chorused.

Sarah held up a thumb, but otherwise didn't move while she waited for the pain to ease up. Several shadows loomed over her, worrying, but at a silent gesture from Wayzz they all stepped back.

Sensing the movement, Sarah peeked up, and found Wayzz waiting for her.

"...you can't mean me," she finally managed, though it came out at almost a whisper.

"And yet we do," Wayzz told her.

"I'm just a _meddler_ , I'm not a...well, look at me!" she gestured at herself, "I'm a train-wreck! I can't even open a _door_ without nearly offing myself!"

"Your collision with the door is not a common occurrence."

"I embarrass myself in class all the time!"

"I have reason to believe that is most often intentional."

"I...I can't use a yo-yo to save my life! LITERALLY!"

"My weapon is a shield."

"...that aside, I-"

"If you dare say you cannot learn to fight, I will sting you," Pollen warned.

"...is...this why you wanted to train me?" Sarah turned to look at her, a hint of pain in her eyes.

"...I had a sense Wayzz might consider you, but that is not why," Pollen told her, "You have the heart of a hero. I have known that from the moment I saw you confront Chloe. I have trained many heroes over the centuries, and I know what I see in you. It is my pride to ensure you meet your full potential, and I will see to it that you do."

"...even if you train me...what makes you think I'm right to wield a Miraculous? Much less be a _Guardian_!" Sarah looked away, "I couldn't do anything right with Plagg, and I'm nothing at all like Master Fu!"

Plagg's tail slashed and his ears flicked slightly back, but otherwise he gave no response to her outburst.

"You do not need to be me, you are enough," Fu said.

"How can I possibly be enough?! There _has_ to be someone better!" Sarah stood to turn and look at him, only to bend her knees and stoop a bit when she remembered the height difference, "I'll help any way I can, I'm sure we can find someone better than-"

"If it is another Wielder you wish to seek out, then perhaps you will not mind guiding Nooroo to his new chosen," Fu said, gesturing to the Kwami by his shoulder.

Nooroo nodded, looking enthusiastic and hopeful.

Sarah gaped, reeling back and upright, "Wh-what?"

"You will help any way you can, yes?" Fu asked.

"Th-that's-! That's the job of the Guardian! Even if you want to make me an apprentice or something, you can't just expect me to take over something like that!" Sarah ranted.

"The Butterfly acts from a distance, sending Champions to act in their stead. They take what is, and adapt to the situation," Fu said, "They will be able to create an opening for you all, should you or your identities be at risk. It is important that you find them as soon as you are able."

Sarah looked between Nooroo and Fu with wide eyes, "N-no…I can't…"

"Yes, you can," Wayzz flew around to face her, "I have chosen you because I know you are the right choice, Sarah. I have felt drawn to your energy the moment Fu first approached you. You have great potential within you, it is only a matter of you having faith in yourself."

She looked stunned, "B-but, I'm not..."

"You are," Wayzz told her, "You have already proven that you will protect the Miraculouses and their chosen, even at a great personal cost. That is what a Guardian is. That is what you are."

Sarah stared up at the serene Kwami, his kind eyes filled with wisdom beyond her.

"...I'm scared," she confessed, sounding as small and helpless as she felt.

"It is a great burden," he agreed, "It is only natural for a fear of failure to take you in its grip. But know this, Sarah: there is not a soul in this room that could claim you incapable."

Slowly, as he encouraged her, she looked around the faces in the room. Human or Kwami, they all looked back without a hint of doubt in their eyes. Even Marinette, who had been insisting she stay out of Miraculous affairs from the beginning, was smiling and nodding at her. Sarah then realized that not once had Marinette objected to this new development.

"…I once thought I would never be good enough to be a hero," Marinette told her, which only really surprised Sarah and Chloe, "I almost gave Tikki away to Alya after that first day."

That surprised all but Tikki. Alya's eyes were widest of all.

"Stoneheart's Akuma possessed an entire army because I failed to purify it," Marinette went on, "I was responsible for making an already messy situation a hundred times worse. It was terrifying."

"You fixed it," Adrien reminded her, remembering the day with a warm smile.

"I was following Alya, trying to slip the Miraculous to her," Marinette admitted, talking mostly to Adrien now, "But then you and Alya were both in danger…and I knew I had to do _something_. And then when I began to doubt myself again, you encouraged me…I couldn't have been brave enough without you guys."

Adrien was speechless, staring back at her. A light blush dusted her cheeks, and his grew warm as well, but they continued to be lost in each other's eyes.

Chloe face-palmed, letting out a silent groan. Pollen, perched on her shoulder, offered a consoling pat. Plagg stifled a snicker. Several others were either cheering them on in silence, or smiling fondly at the scene they'd all been waiting for. Adrinette was _finally_ happening, _halle_ -freaking- _lujah_. This was it, this was happening, yes, yes, y-!

"What a sweet couple," Nooroo sighed softly, unknowingly earning gapes and glares from well over half the room.

The two faces of the "sweet couple" went bright red as they suddenly put a foot of space between each other, and Marinette began one of her wild sign-language attempts as she stammered. Yup, the moment was gone, and now they were were both a flustered mess. D*mn it.

"So, what, exactly, were you saying again, Marinette?" Sarah spoke up quickly, hoping to diffuse the embarrassment.

"Wh-what?" Marinette started.

"I think you were giving me this bug encouraging speech…?" Sarah tried.

Marinette narrowed her eyes slightly at the pun, but relaxed and smiled, "…what I'm trying to say is…each of us were chosen before we even knew what we could do. We've all made mistakes, but we've all managed to grow into our roles…and if anyone is going to become the new Guardian…I certainly hope it's you."

Sarah's eyes shone, and she fought back a lip tremble with all she had.

"We all want it to be you, Sarah," Adrien supported, "We believe in you."

Sarah clapped her hands together over her nose and mouth, knowing she was fighting a losing battle.

"Chosen and Kwami, we all believe in you," Trixx promised, "Even the cheese lunatic."

Sarah looked over at Plagg.

"...fortunately for you, a proper appreciation for cheese _isn't_ a prerequisite to being the Guardian," Plagg huffed.

" _ **Plagg**_ **!** " Several were appalled.

And Sarah laughed, long and hard, till she was crying and laughing simultaneously. Marinette and Alya got to her first, Nino soon after, with Adrien happily jumping in when he realized that a group hug was the thing that was happening. Pollen literally grabbed Chloe's ear and dragged her into the huddle, when the blond tried to make a point of refusing to look at the clumsy and embarrassing display. Somehow Fu ended up in it too, though he appeared slightly bewildered at first as to how it had happened. Sarah found five Kwami cuddling around her neck, feather-light and gently avoiding her bruises, and laughed harder when Trixx and Plagg were arguing over _who_ had the supreme right to the space on the top of her head, even when their wrestling got just a _little_ tangled in her already disheveled hair.

The Kwami and their chosen were precious to her, each and every one of them, from the bratty Chloe and the obnoxious Plagg to the cheerful Tikki and the gentle Nooroo, and every crazy personality in-between. She loved them, and, for whatever insane reason, they trusted her.

Maybe, just maybe she could do this.

…

End Chapter

* * *

Yes, I actually made Sarah a wielder, and now she's even more of a Mary Sue than ever...I couldn't help it. *cringes*

And yes, in the end it appears I was influenced by The Last Pilot's "Won't Tell A Soul" far more than I meant to be. This was not my intention, I only NOW realize that the parallels exceed the mere placement of a Miraculous...hopefully those of you who see them too aren't too frustrated by this...while I obviously disagree with a CANON Turtle Nino, I really loved the Turtle Mother's story, along with the rest of her work I've read (awesome stuff, check it out!), and I in no way would ever want to disrespect her by plagiarizing her work, so realizing I'm hedging that even a little makes me feel antsy. The original draft of this story was pure crack...and I failed to keep it that way...mostly because of Hawkmoth. In the end, this entire thing is all his fault...I mean, can I REALLY be held responsible for the plot bunnies that hatched in my brain? I DIDN'T ASK FOR THIS! I WOULD HAVE BEEN HAPPY SLEEPING INSTEAD OF WRITING THIS! Not that I didn't have fun, because I obviously did, but still, I could have been writing MARICHAT this whole time, okay? BUT THE PLOT BUNNIES WOULDN'T LET ME! *breaths* Okay, shutting up now.

Season Two "spoilers" aside...I still believe that Prince Ali is the true future Turtle. I have no idea how, HE JUST WILL OKAY?! YOU CANNOT CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE! (I mean, if they actually DO use Carapace in canon...ugh, I dunno...it just feels so unreal to me right now...T.T)

Ahem, moving on...considering my Prince Ali belief...Sarah's name presents a bit of irony here. Instead of a "prince", I used a "princess" for the Turtle role...gotta love those coincidences! IT WAS NOT INTENTIONAL I SWEAR!

Let me emphasize...Sarah McCoy's name turned out to be ACCIDENTALLY punny. Sarah is my main default heroine name (generally my "other" Sarahs get a new name as their personalities diverge from my default template, but sometimes it fits so I leave it alone, as so happened here), and McCoy was the first Irish surname that hit me...a pure stroke of fun luck! X3

Sarah was actually the name of my Great-great-grandmother from Ireland, which I suppose inspired this character's heritage. I've never been to Ireland myself, and I'm not sure just how much my American family has actually been influenced by Irish tradition, but hopefully my exposure to the culture via cinema and personal research (mostly revolving around folktales...) is fair enough to scrape by.

By the time I began to consider being less theatric and just writing her in as a French kid from another city, there was no turning back. Sarah McCoy would not be changed...mostly because of the puns, and the jokes I think are funny, but yeah, wow, her character sort of took on a life of it's own, to be honest...she surprises me sometimes. XD

...and...um...it hit me while I was working on the next chapter...everyone else on the team was born in Paris (well, at least so I would assume), except for Sarah, who was born in Ireland...meaning I still chose a foreign born person for the Turtle role, even if Ireland isn't NEARLY as exotic as wherever Prince Ali is from...o.o...AGAIN, NOT ON PURPOSE! (This may be completely trivial to you, but I need to vent about these things, lol!)

...

Oh, and I wasn't really able to work it in...but when Chloe was shrieking loud enough to make Sarah just a LITTLE concerned? Basically Marinette was fretting when Fu began explaining his decision to name Sarah as the new Guardian, trying to claim "there had to be another way"...and Chloe got fed up. Chloe basically snapped Marinette out of her "protect poor little Sarah as much as humanly possible" mindset by saying things that reminded her of her own start as a hero.

Chloe knows full well that Sarah sucks at fighting, but she still trusts and respects her after all they've been through together, which is why she was so hurt when she thought Sarah metaphorically stabbed her in the back (well, she was also really hurt to find out that her ENTIRE TEAM had been lying to her, to be honest). She's seen more of Sarah's tenacity than most, and she's seen the expectation Pollen has in Sarah. She also knows how much the Kwami and their cause mean to Sarah...so Sarah's freak-out reaction to the "amazing news" wasn't quite what she was expecting, lol.

...

Lastly, again, Master Fu's back-story here differs from Canon. I wasn't really expecting his story to be so tragic...gosh dang it, not thinking about it...uuuugh...ANYWAY, yeah, in this AU, he has a LESS tragic back-story, okay?! Here I have the "Guardian" role as more of a handed-down trade, which is a LOT easier on my heart, thank you very much!


	12. All About The Butterflies

*drops this here, panting* Okay, sorry for the wait again, everyone! XD

Snarkophagus...*with manly girl tears, sends finger guns right back* THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND WORDS!

* * *

Chapter 12: All About The Butterflies

Marinette and Alya called their parents, and as it wasn't a school night they easily obtained permission to sleep over at each other's houses (they would have to be extra careful, since Alya's mom's coworkers at the hotel might say something if they were seen there, but since their parents knew how poor their relationship with Chloe was...there really wasn't much else they could do). Nino scraped by without admitting whose house he was staying at, somehow. Sarah twiddled her thumbs during all this, because she was _already_ supposed to be staying over at Chloe's, and she couldn't call or text anyone until she recovered her phone at the hotel. Chloe checked in with Sabrina again, making plans to meet with her the following day, and called for a private room to be prepared at the hotel.

Adrien called his house last, and didn't fuss when pretty much the entire room was leaning in to listen. Marinette had her hands on his shoulder and upper arm, Nino clasped a hand on his other shoulder, and Plagg once again claimed Adrien's mop of hair as his own personal nest.

"Agreste residence," Nathalie answered.

Adrien gulped.

"Hello?"

"...hey, Nathalie..."

"Adrien?" she sounded startled, but then seemed to compose herself, "Do you need something? Your father informed me that you were...out."

Adrien gaped for a moment, then cleared his throat, "Um, yeah, right, I'm _out_...what else did he say?"

"...that was all he would say on the matter," Nathalie replied, just the slightest hint of bitterness and uncertainty seeping in, "It would have been more...practical for you to have informed me sooner."

"...I'm sorry, Nathalie," he told her, "It's...been a bit of an unconventional night...is my father home?"

"He is not," she replied simply.

"...when you have the chance...could you give him a message for me?" he asked.

"...I suppose," she replied.

"...please tell him...I don't like the way he's been treating my _friends_...and that I would rather not see his face for a while," he told her simply, through gritted teeth, "End message."

"...Adrien, I don't know what happened, but-"

"Please, Nathalie," he stopped her, "...it's probably better if you pretend nothing happened. Just...don't worry about me, okay? I'm with people who will keep me safe, so don't worry. Take care of yourself, Nathalie. And please, send my regards to the rest of the staff. Goodbye."

"Adri-"

He hung up, and let out a shaky breath. After a short moment of silence, he broke it himself, "So...what are we going to do? We have to do _something_ , right?"

A majority of the room looked down.

"...even if we have Monsieur Agreste arrested, it's unlikely he'll tell us who he's working with," Chloe spoke up, "Much as he _deserves_ it, I doubt it will fix anything. And the _scandal_ it would cause would be a such a pain to deal with."

Adrien barely flinched.

"...I believe it would be wise to rest, and wait before taking further action against your opponents," Fu said, "You are all weary, and, with limited knowledge concerning them, there is little to be done for now. Focusing on your own energies, and careful preparation will be the key to keeping the Miraculouses safe. Sarah must train, and she may need your help in locating the final member of your team. Having an ally with the Butterfly's abilities may be vital to your success."

…

Exhausted children fell asleep quickly, safe and secure with their trusted comrades right there beside them. Pollen took the first shift of look-out duty, determined not to let anything else catch them off guard that night.

In an otherwise unoccupied hotel room, they had sleep pallets set out in a circle, with a comfy Kwami nest set in the middle. The teens had chosen their spots with little fuss, falling into a comfortable arrangement: Adrien next to Nino, Alya between Nino and Marinette, and Sarah between Marinette and Chloe.

Chloe had quickly taken the spot next to Adrien before anyone could stop her, but since she didn't try to pull any sort of stunt, not even nudging her pallet a millimeter closer to him, it was silently agreed to let her have her way. The only other person who might have tried to claim the spot would have been Marinette, but in all honesty it was probably a bit too soon for the easily flustered lovebirds to sleep next to each other, so it wasn't surprising that she was content to lay between Alya and Sarah instead.

Besides, during the last bits of conversation, before the group finally quieted down for the night, the arrangement allowed Marinette and Adrien to face each other directly across the Kwami nest, still perfectly within reach of each other.

And reach they did. When all the Kwamis had left the nest to snuggle with their respective chosen (or to keep a look out), no one was bothered when two hands crossed the space, fingers entwining where they met.

When morning came, the consequences were imminent. Not only did they manage to fall asleep still holding hands, they were _not_ the first ones to wake up. From fangirlish squeals, to amused snorts, to frustrated groans (because Chloe _so_ saw that coming), Marinette and Adrien awoke to a situation that only could have been _more_ embarrassing if Marinette's parents had somehow been there too.

Much to their mortification, Alya managed to snag a few pictures before the whispers and giggles startled them awake. (Though soon after, of course, both would _discretely_ ask Alya for copies of the pictures…much to her unending amusement.)

…

After some discussion, it was agreed that the most vulnerable members of their team were Adrien, Sarah, and Marinette.

The enemy knew Adrien was Chat Noir, and he could easily be cornered in his own home if he went back. Sarah was also in hot water because she had _definitely_ made Gabriel a personal enemy, and by this point he probably suspected her of knowing more identities than just Adrien's. As for Marinette, Gabriel knew that, at the _very_ least, she had some form of contact with Ladybug, and there was always the potential he could suspect more.

There was a _high_ likelihood that he knew Chloe was Honey Bee, since certain conversations hadn't exactly been subtle. However, Chloe was far better protected from assault than most of them, and it wasn't likely that anyone with all of their mental capacities intact (in other words, anyone who was _not_ an Akumatized idiot) would try to attack the Mayor's daughter (or even her best friend, who was the daughter of a _Lieutenant_ ). Alya was also low risk, since they'd _implied_ Alya had chased the heroes down to tell them about the cellphone, and all of Paris knew how tenacious the blogger could be. Nino had safely avoided notice period, and there was no way Gabriel knew about Master Fu.

As far as security measures, it was fairly simple for Sarah. Sticking close to Chloe in public was already a natural thing, and no one would ever question it. For as long as their enemy was playing it smart, they would never come after Sarah when she was with the Mayor's daughter. As for Chloe's suggestions for Sarah to just outright move into the hotel, or her very generous offer to hire a bodyguard for Sarah...after a moment of shocked silence (because "rich-person generosity" tended to have that effect on normal people), Sarah thanked Chloe for her consideration...and declined both offers as politely as possible, for multiple reasons that seemed lost on the wealthy girl, but a few of which made her eventually drop the subject.

When it came to Marinette's safety, Adrien made it clear right away that he was not going to let anything happen to her. He was immediately set on making it appear that "Adrien Agreste was transferring to a school abroad", and then watching over Marinette as Chat Noir. Plagg's snide remark that he "should just move in with her" prompted Marinette to _actually consider it_. Plagg _tried_ to say he wasn't _serious_ when he realized what she was thinking, but by then it was too late. In a matter of minutes, Marinette was _determined_ to come clean to her parents about her identity, and then ask them if "Chat Noir" could move in.

Then she did. And suddenly _Adrien_ had his own room in the Dupain household. According to eye-witness accounts, it happened less than an hour after Marinette walked downstairs from her bedroom with Chat Noir by her side, and the only screaming involved had been when Tom saw Tikki for the first time. Tom and Sabine had heard them out, and then promptly welcomed the boy, both sides of him, with open arms, fully understanding, and set some lax but loving rules for the two super-heroes. Adrien hadn't had the heart to keep his identity a secret, despite their understanding, and had decided to be completely honest with them. They never gave him a reason to regret that choice.

Everyone else was understandably shocked at how easily the two adults had accepted everything, but a few weeks later it was unanimously agreed that, yes, the Dupains were just that freaking amazing and that questioning this would only give you a massive headache. And while Chloe remained relatively ticked off about the whole arrangement, she didn't argue (much) and offered to financially support Adrien while he stayed with the Dupains.

Tom and Sabine encouraged Adrien to reconsider his idea to "go to school abroad", pointing out that he should prioritize his education for his own sake, and that he deserved to graduate together with Marinette the following year. In the end, to the relief of many, he was swayed. He wouldn't return to the Agreste mansion, not for anything, but the rest of the world didn't need to know things were any different.

When Adrien contacted Nathalie to request that some of his belongings be delivered to Chloe, he learned that his father had had an idea similar to his previous plan. Gabriel was "officially traveling abroad for business reasons until further notice". Only in his father's case, the man had probably actually left the country, though his "business reasons" might not have been what Nathalie would have expected.

Whatever the case, Gabriel clearly didn't want the public to be aware of their current problems, because the staff was dismissed while the house was "renovated", and anyone of importance was informed that Adrien would be staying at Le Grand Paris Hotel for the duration of this "renovation". Nathalie passed along a message to Adrien that his father expected him not to let "the new environment" interfere with his studies, which left Adrien with understandably mixed feelings.

…

After speaking with the others, Sarah made the decision to tell Sabrina about Wayzz, and why she suddenly had (or soon would have) a Kwami. There wasn't really much of a reason to hide it from Sabrina at this point, it would make their lives a lot less complicated, and there was a distinct possibility that she would have found out eventually, which probably wouldn't have ended well. However, they wouldn't tell her about Master Fu or the other Wielders. Sabrina wasn't particularly close to any of them, so there was no harm in maintaining such precautionary measures, if only for the time being.

Thus, the day after Hawkmoth's reign ended, Chloe and Sarah spoke with Sabrina to explain the situation. They told her that the other heroes had merely "figured out Honey Bee's identity on their own", but Sarah admitted she _had_ been aware they'd found out (which is where she'd also admitted to having known the identities of all the heroes from the beginning, due to being "the Guardian's apprentice", which was sort of a backwards truth), and that was why she'd run out like she had.

As for Hawkmoth's defeat, the only parts they left out were the identities of the other heroes, and Hawkmoth's identity as well. They told her that Hawkmoth being "a relative" of one of the heroes complicated things, and left it at that. And as far as Sabrina knew, Marinette was just Ladybug's confidant.

Chloe did beef up her heroics in the tale just a smidgen, however, and claimed the main role in rescuing Sarah, which, admittedly, was true enough. And they referred to Master Fu's apartment as "the Guardian's Secret Hide-out", which was a bit of an exaggeration, but not a lie.

With those few exceptions, they were very forthright with Sabrina. After fully explaining what the "Guardian" was, Sarah admitted her insecurities on becoming the next one, and asked Sabrina for moral support, expressing that she was entrusting Sabrina with the knowledge of her secret identity from that point forth.

Sarah had worried that this knowledge might lead Sabrina to feel excluded, and grow embittered, but Sabrina surprised her. Instead of growing envious, Sabrina _thrived_. She was immediately rattling off plans, fully prepared to be the ultimate alibi for both Chloe and Sarah, and to act as their bodyguard while they were in civilian form. The fact that she was almost sparkling with excitement actually had Sarah a _wee_ _bit_ concerned. Chloe insisted this was a normal reaction, and Sarah opted not to comment further. Pollen seemed quite pleased with Sabrina's work ethic, and Sabrina blushed under the Kwami's praise.

Sarah would eventually realize that Sabrina had actually been worried about Sarah undermining her role as "most helpful", and the fact that Sarah had been bumped to "needs help" status had actually given her a sense of _relief_. And when Sabrina announced she planned to enroll in the Police Academy when the time came, Sarah had a sneaking suspicion that the other cadets would never know what hit them.

…

Sarah hadn't "officially" accepted the Turtle Miraculous the first night. It was agreed that it would be wiser to wait until Sarah was healed and rested enough to train. Thus, a week later, she went with Chloe to meet Master Fu at a safe location.

She learned that she could _chose_ the shape the Miraculous's dormant form took, and so she willed for it to mimic the same appearance as her usual bracelet. The stone obviously didn't change color with her mood, but she figured it wasn't _that_ unusual for a mood-stone to "break". Those close to her knew how much the original bracelet meant to her, so it would be easy to explain why she had kept it even after the stone "broke". And it _was_ a little strange replacing her favorite bracelet, but she figured her personal good-luck charm had earned retirement, and she could always carry it with her in a hidden pocket of her bag.

Sarah might have been just a _wee_ bit excited after transforming for the first time. And Chloe _might_ have had to yell at her a few times before she settled down enough to listen to Master Fu's training advice.

Chloe definitely yelled at her many times after that though. Who knew it was so easy to be a safety hazard with a shield of all things?

Fortunately, Master Fu was surprisingly good at dodging.

…

After a little consideration, Sarah chose the name "Turtle Jade". "Verte" might have worked, but honestly "Jade" sounded prettier, and it felt like a respectful nod to Master Fu, her predecessor and Sifu.

She began visiting Master Fu's clinic a little more often, increasing the amount of time he could teach her everything she needed to know. Wayzz also taught her when she was at home, and claimed receiving lessons from Master Fu wasn't _strictly_ necessary anymore (apparently Fu _had_ been teaching her things all the times she'd visited the clinic prior, the sneak), but Sarah insisted she preferred learning at the clinic with both teachers present.

She had no doubt that Master Fu and Wayzz both knew full well that this wasn't her only reason, but they never challenged her decision. Separating two friends, who had been together for _well_ _over_ a century, wasn't exactly high on her list of priorities. Also, she sort-of worried about Fu living alone now, despite the fact he was not _nearly_ as helpless as he often pretended to be.

As far as her family knew, her "apprenticeship" under Master Fu was simply of the "healer" variety, which was met with a fair amount of enthusiasm. Rose and Juleka eagerly congratulated her and encouraged her new interest. It made more sense to include people on this part of her life than to try and hide it, so she had shared the news with those closest to her.

Besides, it made a pretty rock-solid alibi.

…

After little more than a week of exploring the city with Nooroo's Miraculous hidden in her pocket, Sarah finally found Simon Grimault, a young man with a passion for hypnotism. Sarah tested him by pretending to fall and twist her ankle, and she found his reaction to her plight perfectly adequate. His prompt offering to help her stand, and the gentle concern in his eyes told her immediately that he was a kind soul. He even waited with her until her friend found her, _despite_ the fact that it would make him late for an appointment.

Then he tried to take the blame for the situation when Chloe blew up at her for being so careless. It was a pitiable attempt, and Chloe didn't buy it for even a second (she barely paid enough attention to him to tell him to stop wasting her time and get lost), but it was really sweet that he'd tried.

Sarah had then used her fake limp as an excuse to see Master Fu. Pollen obviously wasn't fooled, but Chloe was too irritated from the whole thing to notice how hard Sarah was trying not to show her excitement. Patient Wayzz was the sole reason that Chloe didn't notice Nooroo dancing for joy in Sarah's bag.

Master Fu humored her. He pretended to treat the ankle, then diverted Chloe's attention by making a small, but slightly tedious, request.

Sarah then quickly spilled the details about the Butterfly candidate, and asked him what he thought. Fu was ready to trust her judgment, but Sarah wasn't so ready for her judgment to be trusted, so she asked him to see Simon for himself first.

Quite fortunately, learning a certain amount of personal information from Simon had been a simple task (he was very honest and polite), so finding him again was easy. Convincing Chloe that Sarah's "Chi studies" would be very boring to sit through was not so difficult either.

Hunting down and then spying on the unsuspecting Simon with Fu, Wayzz, and (the undeniably excited) Nooroo turned out to be a lot of fun. Simple "tourist" disguises, and a collapsible wheelchair Fu had apparently gotten somewhere, made things just a little more interesting. Sarah even carried a working camera around her neck, and took a few pointless pictures to _really_ sell it.

Then they split up so Master Fu could pull his "helpless old man" act, and Simon easily proved that his kindness wasn't reserved for young damsels in distress alone. Fu approved, and advised her to promptly take the next step.

Then he left her to do the rest herself, insisting she was ready.

Sarah was relieved when Master Fu agreed with her choice, but it made her no less anxious when she had to find exactly where Simon lived, break into his apartment, and leave the precious Miraculous for him to find.

It wasn't even the stalking, or the breaking and entering that made her so antsy (though perhaps that should have contributed a _teensie_ bit more). Poor Nooroo had already been through so much, and it would be _terrible_ if they were wrong about Simon, even though they could probably just steal the Miraculous back. Sure, _maybe_ Plagg had been right about Nooroo "bouncing back" easily, but still. It wasn't until she heard Simon unlocking the door that she finally hurried out the window, desperately praying she'd made the right choice.

If she hadn't been worried that someone would see a green-clad weirdo hanging off the wall of the building, she would have stayed to witness his reaction.

She did, however, hear a rather girlish shriek from about a block away.

…

After around an hour's time, most of which Sarah spent pacing on a secluded rooftop, she received a video-call on her "shell-phone" from the Butterfly's cane.

"Um...i-is this Turtle Jade?" the now transformed young man asked, uncertain.

"I am indeed, Monsieur," she offered a smile and a nod, "How are you this fine day?"

"Uh, er...fine, and you?" he scrambled.

"To be honest...I'm a little nervous," she admitted, the grandeur in her voice receding to reveal some of her own anxiety, "This is my first real act as Guardian of the Miraculous. I've never had to leave a Miraculous with a Chosen before..."

"Oh, really?" he inquired, surprised and curious.

"Yup, the previous Guardian...don't you _dare_ tell him I said this, but he's just a _little_ too old to be active now, so he passed the torch onto me," she explained, "It's...a pretty terrifying responsibility, but...I already can't imagine my life being any different."

She smiled as she said the last bit, a sense of passion and pride glowing in her gray eyes.

"...this Kwami, Nooroo...he said you chose me...why?" he asked.

"The Butterfly Miraculous chose you more than I did," she explained, "But I did check up on you before I was ready to hand it over...and based on what I've found, I feel like I can trust you to treat the Miraculous with respect...something the previous wielder clearly didn't understand..."

He looked concerned as he contemplated that last part.

"...I haven't had much time to really get to know Nooroo yet...but he's a gentle spirit, and he was very excited to meet you," Sarah told him, "Please treat him well."

"Ah..." he looked a little panicked.

"Hey, it's okay," she told him, "I know what we're asking of you is...well, crazy. It's a lot to think about, and it's a _huge_ commitment to make...it's okay to be...overwhelmed. I know _I_ certainly freaked when I found out I was a Chosen...and I had an advantage most don't. Also, rumor has it that Ladybug threw half the contents of her room at Tikki when they first met, and I think Peacock Blue fainted when Duusu popped out...so, yeah, freaking out? Fairly mandatory for new recruits, I'm afraid."

The young man blinked, then laughed uncertainly.

"...you... _are_ free to turn it down, if you truly can't commit to it," she said, "My team and I...we expect something bad is coming. The man Paris knew as "Hawkmoth" was finally stripped of the Butterfly Miraculous, but he escaped with the aid of some frightening people we've never encountered before...we expect he will return, and possibly with the help of allies we cannot yet anticipate...and in order to be prepared for that, we need someone who can supply the support only the Butterfly can, and that's why I'm asking you now...I...I'm afraid that I might not find someone else to ask before we run into trouble...so...if...you're willing to try...please...will you help us?"

Yes, she was definitely giving him her best pleading look, but her feelings of anxiety and desperation were genuine. He could tell she truly meant what she said, and his kind heart was clearly swayed by her words.

"...I-I've been Akumatized before..." he confessed.

She blinked in surprised, then smiled sheepishly, "So have I, actually..."

His jaw dropped, "You have?"

"Out of the six of us, only Chat Noir and Ladybug have managed to avoid being Akumatized," she admitted, "And Chat Noir has been an Akuma minion more times than I can count. Trust me, you have nothing to be embarrassed about."

Simon smiled a little.

Of course, Sarah didn't know anything about the "Simon Says" incident. She had absolutely no idea that yet _another_ incredibly awkward reveal was just waiting to happen. She didn't even suspect.

"I've heard you're a hypnotist?" she changed the subject.

"Ah, yes!" he replied, "Nooroo said that...the Butterfly's power is a bit like hypnotism..."

"It kind of is," she agreed, "At least, as far as I understand it. You speak directly to a person's subconscious, and use the power of suggestion to convince them of something, right?"

"Yes!" he agreed, smiling fully now, "When you speak to a person's subconscious, you can help them think more positively about something, quit unwanted habits, or even overcome their fears!"

She found herself smiling too. He seemed to have a kind nature, similar to Nooroo's, and his enthusiasm for good filled her with relief, "...I have a feeling you could find a way to use the Butterfly's powers in ways just as helpful to others, Simon."

"...you really think so?" he asked.

"I do," she nodded, "It might take time for you to figure things out...and you might find people are wary of butterflies after how their reputation has been tarnished by that cruel man...but as long as you are willing to try, and put forth the effort to learn...I believe that you can find the way to use this power the way it's truly meant to be used."

There was an eager enthusiasm in his eyes now.

"...so, what do you think?" she asked, "Do you think you could give this a try?"

He nodded seriously, "If you and Nooroo really think I can do this...then maybe I can. So, it's worth a try!"

She grinned happily, "Great! Now we just need to think of a name for you!"

"Name?" he asked.

"Well, I doubt you want to be called "Hawkmoth", and that would probably confuse people anyway," she said, "My teammates and I have tried brainstorming a few ideas, but, in the end, it's really up to you."

"...what are your ideas?" he asked.

…

The public had _really_ begun to buzz with speculation once a full three weeks passed without even a _hint_ of an Akuma. It was time to make the announcement, and the team was finally prepared to play their part.

One request to the Mayor, and the press conference was quickly set-up. A request for a limo ride from a discrete location to the conference? No problem.

Cameras went wild as first Ladybug, then Chat Noir, then Foxy Rouge, then Peacock Blue, and then Honey Bee stepped out of the Limo. Turtle Jade was more-or-less _yanked_ out of the Limo, due to a sudden case of stage fright and Bee's severe lack of patience. Turtle Jade waved sheepishly as the crowd made a ruckus around them (as they were clearly shocked at the sight of a _new_ masked face), but she managed to walk with a more confidant air after that, and followed her teammates to the small podium set up for them in the middle of the Princess Stadium.

Due to a potential need to escape quickly, the heroes had requested for this instead of a standard seated arrangement indoors, despite the fact it was December and _very_ _cold_ _outside_. They did have chairs set out for them, but more than likely they would not be used. Posing was more fun and dramatic, even if it _was_ more exhausting. One Podium, and one microphone, was all they really needed. It gave them a little more control over what their audience heard, and emphasized how close they were as teammates when they shared a mic.

Chat and Ladybug stepped up to the small podium together, the remaining four fanning out behind them. Knowing it was time, the press hushed immediately, and the duo began.

"We have quite the tail for you all," Chat started off with his usual antics, "So we would a-purr-eciate it if you could with-hold all questions until the end."

Ladybug half-rolled her eyes, smiling a little despite herself, "Yes, we have a lot to say, and you are sure to have plenty of questions, but please wait until we are finished speaking."

Receiving a note of understanding from the crowd, Ladybug took a breath.

"As I'm sure you've all noticed, Akuma attacks have not occurred for a few weeks now. It is unfortunate that we could not inform you as to the cause sooner, but I hope you'll understand that we were a bit preoccupied with all that happened, and wished to ascertain the situation to the best of our ability before making our announcement.

"Three weeks ago, our team uncovered Hawkmoth's Lair, and we managed to take the Butterfly Miraculous from him. The Butterfly Miraculous is the item that gave Hawkmoth his power to begin with, and without it he can no longer create Akumas."

Joyful and relieved grins eagerly began to spread throughout the crowd, but Ladybug wasn't finished, "Regretfully, Hawkmoth managed to escape with the aid of allies we have never before encountered, and we have no idea where he might be now. Although he no longer has the power to create Akumas, we believe he and his allies will continue to seek the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculouses, for reasons we still do not fully understand. Therefore, our team will remain ever diligent in ensuring he never obtains a Miraculous again."

This news was worrisome, and left a few people looking concerned.

"But Paris has no need to worry, because our team is stronger than ever!" Chat flexed his biceps, winking at the crowd, "So you can rest assured **The Miraculous Seven** will keep our powers safe from evil's greedy claws!"

Intrigue and surprise were the expected responses to the unfamiliar title, and Chat was not to be disappointed.

"Yes, we've decided on an official name for our team," Ladybug answered the obvious question, "And just like it sounds, we have seven members total."

"I do believe it's time for us to introduce one of our newest members now, don't you, Bugaboo?" Chat suggested playfully.

"I do believe you're right, Kitty!" Ladybug mock-gasped, then smiled at the press, "Yes, it is our great pleasure to introduce, our friend, **Turtle Jade**."

The duo stepped to either side of the podium, allowing Jade to slide up to the microphone.

"Hello!" she waved politely to the press, "It's a real honor to be here! I'm Turtle Jade, and if you have any questions for me I'll happily answer them, _after_ these two are done telling you about our _amazing_ seventh and final member!"

"Unfortunately, they could not join us here today, but they are very much a vital part of our team," Ladybug drew in again to the microphone as Jade hopped back.

"A real game changer!" Chat Noir added with a confidant smirk.

"You see, the Butterfly Miraculous was never meant to be used for evil," Ladybug explained, "It was meant to empower well-meaning people to do good things! Once we freed it from the wrong hands, we were able to find the right person to use its powers for good!"

"Well, more like a turtally amazing girl found them for us, isn't that right, Shelly?" Chat called back to Jade, whose eye twitched slightly at the unfortunate nick-name.

She adored puns, _really_. But _Shelly_? She _knew_ people with that name.

However, she left it alone and leaned forward to speak to the crowd, "Chat Noir is exaggerating, but he is right on one thing. I completely agree that I'm _heavily_ investing my reputation on this person. I have inherited the role of "Guardian", which means I'm supposed to regulate who ends up with what Miraculous, and to make sure they don't fall into the wrong hands. I found the face behind this new hero, and I'm vouching for them. If they screw up somehow, the blame is on me, okay?"

"The two of you are going to do just fine," Ladybug patted her shoulder, pointedly announcing her faith in her new teammates to the press, and earning a small smile from the girl.

"With a little luck, maybe," Jade agreed with a soft laugh.

"Turtle Jade, and our final member, **Swallowtail** , have a case of the new-hero-jitters, but give them a little time and they'll make us all purroud!" Chat Noir told the press, patting Turtle's other shoulder.

Jade offered him a smile before stepping back again.

"Yes, Swallowtail is especially nervous, considering their power will no doubt have people feeling antsy at first," Ladybug added, "But rest assured, Swallowtail will not be taking advantage of people who feel wronged, like Hawkmoth did. Swallowtail's job is to offer power to people with a strong desire to help others."

"Swallowtail's butterflies can fly surprisingly fast!" Chat Noir told them, "There could be times when you need a hero, but the rest of us could be too far away to help in time! But with Swallowtail's gift of power, an ordinary person on the street could become the hero of the day!"

"There is a downside, however," Ladybug added with less enthusiasm, "When the need for the gifted power is over, and the butterfly leaves the person, not only will all remnants of that power vanish, but so will the person's memories of the event. Becoming a "Champion" of the butterfly seems to be like falling asleep, and not remembering your dreams when you wake, regardless of whether it was a happy dream or a nightmare."

"But rest assured," Chat winked, "Swallowtail wants nothing more than to ensure that becoming a Champion is a pawsitive experience for anyone brave enough to accept their help."

"And remember, Swallowtail can never force someone to accept a transformation," Ladybug said, "They can sense a person's distress, and send one of their butterflies to that person, but the person can still reject their offer."  
"But Swallowtail might not even need to make the offer," Chat Noir added, "If one of us is in the area, they can just let us know where they sensed the distress and we can check it out! Swallowtail is now our own purrsonal problem detector!"

"As you can see, this is an _incredible_ power!" Ladybug took her turn, "Which is why we thought it best to take an extra precaution. You see, Swallowtail's powers work best when they're stationary. There's really no reason for them to run around the way the rest of us do. So, we thought, if the public will never see them in action on a normal day, then perhaps we should take advantage of further obscurity by concealing _anything_ to do with their physical appearance. This helps ensure that their identity will not be discovered by those who would steal the Butterfly Miraculous from them and use it for evil. This is why we have been avoiding gender-specific pronouns for them. It's just an extra precaution, at least for the time being."

Simon's true identity was still a secret to the rest of the team, but they had all met Swallowtail once before in person (and only once, because arranging a secret meeting like that was a massive pain), and most of them had spoken with him a few times via weapon-phones. They were all well aware he was a guy, but Sarah had insisted that the public didn't need to know that.

"But we can tell you this much: though I'm sure you have your doubts now, Swallowtail _is_ trustworthy," Chat Noir promised, "After what we went through with Hawkmoth, all of us were uncertain about placing such a power in another person's hands...but when I met Swallowtail, I knew there was nothing to worry about. I hope you'll trust this cat's instincts on that."

"It's the same for all of us. We all agreed that they can be trusted, right?" Ladybug turned to the others.

Everyone nodded, except for Bee, who crossed her arms and frowned.

Ladybug cleared her throat, "...would you like to say something, Honey Bee?"

"...I give it a week before this city is covered in cutesy flowers, or something equally naïve and completely lame," Bee announced.

Turtle Jade visibly cringed.

"Unless they Championize a florist, I doubt ideas like that would take root," Chat Noir joked.

"And _actually_ , at this time of year we could _use_ a touch of flora..." Ladybug considered, but then waved the thought away, "Moving on, that's all we really wanted to say, so if there are any questions, we'll try to answer them now."

There were a lot of questions. Some were more difficult to answer than others, especially where it concerned a certain someone.

"Do you know who Hawkmoth is?" was the first.

"The place where we encountered him was very dark," Ladybug spoke smoothly, her lines practiced and carefully thought out, and her tone carrying just the right amount of regret, "And almost as soon as we managed to recover the Butterfly Miraculous, we were ambushed. Our attackers may not have possessed any magic, but they were highly skilled fighters, and someone with us was injured, so we were forced to retreat while the man behind Hawkmoth escaped. None of us had the chance to see his true face clearly. All we know for certain is that he is a man with unknown ambitions, and that if he tries to steal our Miraculouses, or hurt _anyone_ in our beloved Paris again, we _will_ stop him."

Though disappointed, most of the room held faith in her words, and were encouraged by them. It had taken quite the debate to decide how this question would be answered, but the team was satisfied that this was the best way (even if none of them were happy that Marinette was forced to lie, especially Adrien).

"Was Turtle Jade there with you when you defeated Hawkmoth?"

Well, despite their best efforts, _maybe_ the Miraculous Seven hadn't quite anticipated _all_ the media's questions.

"Um…" Jade shyly shifted over to the mic, "The previous Guardian had not yet given me the Turtle Miraculous at that time. Back then I was only an apprentice in training. If I _had_ been Turtle Jade at that time, I truly would have been honored to stand with them that day…but I wasn't, so no, I'm afraid that I, Turtle Jade, was not present at that time."

She only made it one small step back away from the mic before another question was directed at her.

"As "Guardian", do you know the identities of all the heroes?"

Jade awkwardly turned back to the mic, slightly flustered by the attention, "…well, yes, as Guardian I do have the responsibility to know who everyone is, and to make sure the Miraculous are in the right hands."

"It has been stated that none of the others are supposed to know, is that true?"

Jade let out a small laugh, "For as long as an Akuma could turn us against each other, only the previous Guardian was meant to know such things, yes, but without that threat looming over our heads, we have agreed it is safe to share our civilian identities among ourselves, at our own discretion."

"It was further stated that there are several Ladybugs sharing the mask. What about you and Swallowtail?"

Jade smiled as she answered, "Again, with the Akuma threat gone, and with our group of seven finally complete, all of the additional members behind each mask are retiring. Many wonderful ladies have worn Ladybug's mask, but only the first to don it, our one true leading lady, will continue to from this point forward. You no longer have to wonder if it's a different person each time you see one of us."

It was oddly satisfying to end her own made-up legend.

"To clarify, _is_ Ladybug your leader, or is the "Guardian" the true leader of your team?"

Jade frowned, and was ready to step back and let Ladybug clarify the situation, only to turn and see the girl giving her the "go ahead" to continue speaking. What the heck? The others looked confused too, but no one said a word.

Jade thought about it for a moment, and cleared her throat, "...this team that you see before you now has never been _lead_ by a Guardian, nor do I see that changing any time soon. A "Guardian" is simply that, someone who protects.

" _Ladybug_ is the one who calls the shots, and Chat Noir is her indispensable Confidant and Partner. Our "Lady Luck" and her "Knight of Misfortune" are our Leaders, and they are the heart of our team; our inspiration.

"Peacock Blue acts as our eyes, advising us on what lies ahead, while Foxy Rouge deceives the eyes of our adversaries. Honey Bee cuts right to the heart of our problems, and Swallowtail is our doorway to endless possibilities. As for me…I'm pretty much just their paranoid babysitter."

Bee made a sound of indignation, but the other four just nodded and/or snickered.

"I hang back, make sure everyone is doing okay, make sure their backs are covered...since, well, mine clearly is," Jade tapped the shield on her back for emphasis.

Some of the crowd laughed.

"A question for Swallowtail!"

Jade shared a concerned glance with her teammates, but they were no more certain on how to deal with this than she was, so again she leaned into the mic, "What is your question, sir?"

"Is he too weak to fight for himself?" the man tested, "Does he not think it cowardly to hide while the rest of you face danger head-on?"

Jade bristled at his tone, "I take it you don't think highly of our precautionary measures to ensure that this power _never_ falls into the wrong hands again?"

"Is it in the _right_ hands if he can't even protect himself?"

"I didn't choose Swallowtail for their ability to whack people with a _stick_! I _chose_ them for their _intelligence_ , their _creativity_ , and, _most of all_ , for their _kind heart_!" she declared, "The person I entrusted with the Butterfly Miraculous is _more_ than worthy! I can't even _imagine_ a better Swallowtail!"

Her passion blew a few people away, and had a few reporters thinking up questions in a whole other direction, but the man who had instigated wasn't ready to back down.

"So, you're saying it's not at all cowardly that this "Swallowtail" won't even show his face to the public?"

Oh _no,_ he _did not_ just go there.

Foxy whistled, shaking her head as she hummed the same sentiment.

" _Wow_ ," Peacock followed, clearing his throat in discomfort.

"Talk about un _mask_ ing our insecurities," Chat commented.

"Um...you _might_ not want to be saying that when _we're_ all wearing masks...?" Jade suggested with a slightly forced smile.

"Uh..." the man blanched, realizing his error.

"I am _not_ a coward!" Bee was offended.

"Okay!" Ladybug held up her hands, "I'm sure he didn't _mean_ to insult us...right?"

"No-no! Of course not!" he answered quickly.

Even _he_ wasn't dumb enough to insult Paris's beloved heroes so boldly.

"It was a group decision for Swallowtail to remain as anonymous as possible," Ladybug stated with finality, "It doesn't mean our friend won't work _just_ as hard as the rest of us to ensure the safety of Paris's citizens."

"Turtle Jade!" another reported jumped in, "How did you choose Swallowtail?"

"Uh..." Jade blinked, "W-well, the Miraculouses naturally react to the presence of a suitable candidate, so the Butterfly Miraculous led me to them. After that, it was only a matter of observing their potential for good, and ensuring that they were a good match...and I truly believe that the person I found is worthy to wield this power."

"How do you feel about this Swallowtail?"

Jade blinked, momentarily confused, "How do I feel?"

Hadn't she _just_ finished explaining how she felt?

"Do you hold any _special_ feelings for this person, Turtle Jade?"

Jade could feel her eye twitching. Freaking reporters...Alya Cesaire not to be excluded, because Jade could hear Foxy making sounds of suspicion behind her. (And the illusion of Alya's civilian self out in the crowd was wearing an excited grin.)

"...if by _special_ you mean I feel protective of them because I'm the one who brought them into this, then yes. If you're hoping for anything _other_ than comradeship, I'm afraid you'll have to live with disappointment."

And there did indeed seem to be an air of disappointment throughout the crowd. Ugh.

"I may be new," Jade added, before another question could be voiced, "But I deeply care for _everyone_ on this team. Each and every one of them is important to me, and I adore _all_ of them...yes, even Bee. She can certainly _bee_ a royal pain with that attitude-"

" _Jade_ ," Bee growled in warning.

"-but don't let her fool you. Deep down she's as sweet as-"

"Don't you dare!" Bee snapped.

"Do it!" Chat encouraged.

Ladybug and Blue face-palmed. Foxy just giggled.

"...honey," Jade leaned away from the threatening aura, watching Bee warily.

"You sicken me," Bee seethed.

"Yeah, she hides it _really_ well, but it's in there...somewhere," Jade sheepishly assured the audience, discretely knuckle-bumping Chat Noir while keeping her eye on the still ticked-off Bee, "Anyway, I hope that clarified a few things."

"What sort of powers do you have, Turtle Jade?"

"I can put up magical shields," she answered simply, "It may not seem like much, but I'll do my best to use this power well."

"What can your weapon do?"

With a smile of amusement, she pulled her shield off her back, and held it up above her. She let it expand outwards, not too much though, since she didn't want to hit anyone, before returning it to it's original size.

"I come in really handy when it rains," Jade joked, as she put her shell-shield back where it belonged, smirking a little at the snorts behind her, and happy to see amusement filter through the crowd.

"What about Swallowtail? Do they have a weapon too?"

"A cane, yes," Jade nodded, forcing herself not to shudder at the memory of it.

"So _Swallowtail_ needs a _walking_ _stick_?" the same cynical reporter from earlier wanted to know.

Jade face-palmed, shaking her head in disbelief before frowning at the man, "Are you _serious_? It's _always_ a cane, and will always _be_ a cane, _regardless_ of whether the wielder needs a walking stick on a normal day or not. And for the record, Swallowtail is _fully_ capable of walking without one, are we _clear_ , monsieur?"

"I believe Paris has the right to be concerned whether or not your Swallowtail could properly defend himself if "Hawkmoth's allies" find him."

"I. Will not. Let them _find_ Swallowtail to begin with," Jade ground out, "As for their fighting ability, they _will_ receive any training they may require _if_ they need it, because I _do_ agree that we must always be prepared, and we _will_ be."

"Does Paris even _need_ the Miraculouses anymore?"

Everyone gave pause, and looked to the elder woman who had spoken.

"Why go to all this trouble protecting something the world doesn't even _need_?" she wanted to know, "As we have clearly seen, the Miraculouses are _dangerous_ in the wrong hands. If they were _gone_ , we would never have to fear someone like Hawkmoth ever again!"

When Jade looked back to her friends, and it was clear that not even Ladybug was prepared to answer such a terrifying question. Such an idea wouldn't have crossed their minds, or if it had...it had been too painful to contemplate further. You could see it in their eyes: the deep, dark fear of losing their beloved Kwamis...and the horrible doubt that rose up to sneer at them.

Did they really need the Miraculous anymore? Did they really have the _right_ to wield them anymore? What was stopping Fu from simply taking the Miraculouses back into hiding, far away from evil's hands?

Sarah had questioned this soon after Master Fu had placed Wayzz in her care. Would there come a day when she would have to see the Miraculous hidden away?

 _"Times bring change. Take each step with care, and you will know where to place your feet."_

He and Wayzz had explained their perspectives to her. The torch had been handed off to her and her teammates. They were the future of the Miraculous now.

Sarah did not know what the future would bring, but she knew she could face anything, just as long as she had her friends standing beside her. For now, that was all she needed to know to move forward.

"Madam, there may indeed come a day when Miraculous powers are laid to rest again," Jade spoke calmly, hoping her friends would be the least bit assured by her display of confidence, "They have been hidden away for decades just to prevent people from abusing their power, but now, for the first time in a _very_ long time, all seven of us stand together, and we are united in our efforts to use these powers for good. If Paris, or even the world does not wish for our help, we will in time fade back to the shadows, but for now, I truly hope you can find meaning in our presence here."

" _Can_ the Miraculouses be destroyed?"

Thinking back, it was obvious now what the reporter had meant by "gone" with her first question. Still, it took Jade a moment to stop seeing red long enough to remember that this woman had _no_ idea what she was suggesting. She was barely aware of the scuffle behind her. She wasn't sure who had almost lost it, or who had stopped them, but she knew the air needed to be cleared quickly, and she was still the one taking up the space in front of the mic.

"...Madam, you certainly know how to make a girl's blood run _cold_ ," Jade breathed out, knowing that she needed to calm down and explain the issue, "I'm afraid you do not realize the full extent of your suggestion. Even if they _could_ be destroyed, not only would you be destroying _priceless_ historical artifacts, which have saved lives _beyond_ counteracting Akumas over the course of _centuries_ , you would be destroying the _living_ , _sentient_ magic within them."

"So, you're saying the Miraculouses are _alive_?" another reported asked quickly.

" _Yes_ , they _are_ ," Jade affirmed, _somehow_ managing to keep her tone from dripping with venom.

"How do you know this? Do they talk?"

Jade couldn't help but smile, and she was sure the others were smiling behind her, "They can be _quite_ vocal, yes. They act as spirit guides, advising us with ancient wisdom, and always reminding us to use their powers for the right reasons. They are also there for us, as friends, and I know I speak for all of us when I say we deeply care about them. We do not simply protect the Miraculouses for the sake of using their power for good, or to protect their power from the hands of evil. If the Miraculous are taken, our _friends_ would be lost to us as well. I sincerely hope that can be clearly understood."

"Back in January, a fake Ladybug confronted an Akuma about someone called...Nooroo? Does this bear any connection to these "spirit guides"?"

Ugh, she was never going to escape references to that awful day, was she?

"Nooroo is the voice of the Butterfly Miraculous, yes," Jade admitted, "He is a gentle, kind-hearted spirit, and he is truly _horrified_ with all the things Hawkmoth did with his power. His Miraculous was lost to a previous Guardian a very long time ago, and it was feared to have been lost forever. It is most unfortunate that Hawkmoth was the one who found it, but we cannot change the past. We can only move forward from here."

Technically she should have said _the_ previous Guardian, but she kept it vague just to be on the safe side. Most men didn't live for nearly 200 freaking years, after all.

"Would Nooroo know anything about Hawkmoth's true identity?"

Well, she'd walked herself into that one, hadn't she?

"Hawkmoth was a cunning man, and he hid a lot of things from Nooroo. There was not much he could tell us, unfortunately," Jade shook her head.

For better or worse, she had loop-holes.

"How was the Butterfly Miraculous lost to begin with?"  
"It was a tragedy, and one that we will do everything in our power to prevent from happening again," Jade spoke, solemn, "We were not given the story in great detail ourselves, and I believe I speak for all of us when I say we would rather not elaborate."

She noted nods of a similar attitude from her teammates before turning to observe the crowd again.

"Though Swallowtail is not available for comment, is he available to use his powers for a little demonstration?"

Jade blinked, and looked back to her teammates to see what they thought. Ladybug was considering it, and pulling out her yo-yo to call Swallowtail.

"One moment, please," Ladybug spoke to the mic, before walking away to speak with him more privately. Jade, and the rest of the team soon after, crowded around her. Ladybug ignored the intrusion, and waited for Swallowtail to answer.

"Sh-should I?!" were the first, nervous words out of the young man's mouth, "I-I've never done this before! I-I-I'm not so sure if this is a good idea!"

"Hey, you don't have to if you don't think you're ready," Jade was quick to assure him, "It's just a chance to show off a little, don't stress it. We're right here to help if you decide you want to, but you don't _have_ to."

"It would be really cool if you did though."

" _Blue_!" Jade hissed.

"They're going to call you a coward if you don't."

" _BEE_!" Jade snapped.

"Okay, okay, _enough_ ," Ladybug held up her hand, then turned to the screen, "Look, Swallowtail, I understand you're nervous, but if you're willing to try, I _know_ you can do this. It doesn't have to be anything _big_ , alright? You could just send a little parade of butterflies and have them flutter around. I don't think anyone is ready to become a Champion just yet anyway."

Swallowtail considered that with a furrowed brow, "...I'm not sure if that-"  
"I VOLUNTEER!"

Everyone turned to gape at where Sabrina stood in the crowd, waving her arm with great exuberance, "I want to be a Champion!"

The fake Alya she had been sitting next to was now gaping as well.

Jade noticed Bee was happily checking her nails, and had a sneaking suspicion that this was her fault. Knowing Chloe, she was probably right.

"I-I have a volunteer!" Swallowtail finally gasped out.

"Uh..." Jade tried to think of a way to salvage the situation, looking to Ladybug for help, but the girl was just wincing in defeat, "Well..."  
"I have a volunteer!" Swallowtail cheered, suddenly _very_ excited.

Oh. Okay then. (Sarah was beginning to understand Plagg's "annoying bouncy ball" reference now. That described the feeling to a T.)

Relieved, five friends let out a small chuckle.

"So what are you waiting for?" Bee wanted to know, "Get to it, and it had _better_ be good!"  
"R-right, uh..." he held a knuckle to chin as he bit his lip.

"Hold on, we'll set the stage for you, alright?" Jade winked, heading back over to the mic, smiling at the crowd before setting her eyes on the eager red-head, "You are very brave to offer, mademoiselle, are you sure?"

Sabrina nodded with an excited bounce.

"Alright, then would you please join us over here?" Jade walked out from behind the podium, offering a hand in a clear invitation. Sabrina quickly hurried over, and let Jade guide her to stand behind the mic. Sabrina offered a shy smile and wave to the cameras before turning her attention to Jade as she spoke.

"Now, for this to work, you need to think of what you want to do," Jade told her, loud enough for the mic to catch, "Something helpful, maybe for someone you care about. Try to keep it simple, and then focus on that feeling."

Sabrina thought about it for a minute, then brightened.

"Think of something?" Jade asked her, genuinely curious.

Sabrina gestured her closer, and whispered to her ear. Listening intently to the idea, Jade soon grinned widely, and nodded in encouragement. Emboldened, Sabrina quickly focused on focusing.

Swallowtail didn't waste any time.

People gasped as a cute, radiant violet butterfly fluttered toward Sabrina, and vanished into her favorite broach. An outline of a mask, glowing fuchsia, appeared over her face and illuminated it in a flattering way. Then Sabrina nodded in affirmation, to words only she could hear.

"Yes, Swallowtail."

Everyone watched in fascination as Sabrina's body was surrounded by pure white and vibrant lavender light that sparkled around her, leaving behind her new appearance.

"I am The Wing-Woman!" the masked girl announced with a bright smile, spreading a pair of colorful butterfly wings, and taking flight.

She hovered behind Honey Bee, and patted the space between Bee's shoulders. To the blond girl's astonishment, a set of gossamer wings sprouted from her back.

"Now you can fly!" Wing-Woman announced.

And so she did, with a smile of amazement Bee flew above them as naturally as her Kwami. She spun in the air, and posed for the cameras, obviously enjoying herself.

Wing-Woman tagged Ladybug next, and soon she too was flitting about with animated glee. Peacock Blue was also given a befitting set of wings, and due to their large size forced Foxy and Chat to drop to the floor when he tried spreading them out. He then quickly folded them back with an apologetic smile, and decided against trying to use them. Wing-Woman had to pause as she considered the other three heroes, finally opting to give Foxy and Chat wings similar to Blue's, pure black ones for Chat (they may have _looked_ like feathers, but _furtunately_ they weren't real), and white ones for Foxy (real " _faux"_ feathers, as Chat made it a point to mention). When she hovered over Jade, it was clear she was stumped.

"I'm happy here on the ground, thanks," Jade assured her with a chuckle, "No one wants to see me crash into a wall."

"Could you move your shield out of the way?" Wing-Woman asked.

Jade hesitated, but then shrugged and did as was asked.

And then grinned wickedly when she found herself sporting _dragon_ wings. H*ll freaking _yes!_ She wasn't going to try flying with them, not in front of so many cameras, but _d*mn_ was she tempted.

They were really going to need to Championize Sabrina more often. Seriously.

"As you can see, when the Butterfly's power is used the right way, it becomes a gift that keeps on giving," Jade spoke into the mic again, bright with fresh enthusiasm, "I'm sure you can imagine how the power of flight could be a great asset to a super-hero. And this mademoiselle came up with the idea all on her own! All it takes is one helpful thought in the midst of a crowd, and with Swallowtail's power that single thought could become something truly Miraculous!"

Later the Miraculous Seven would look back and feel mortified over how childishly giddy they had acted in front of _so_ _many_ cameras, but for that moment they were just too happy to care. They were all smiles as Ladybug flew down like a fairy to Chat Noir, and pulled him up into the air to dance with her.

Chat Noir flung out his big, shadowy wings with a dramatic flare...which, as he should have expected, sent a large gust of wind over the audience, but fortunately they didn't seem to mind too much, as the pictures were _totally_ worth it.

Blue _shrieked_ when Foxy grabbed his arm, took off with him in tow, spun with him mid-air, and then _let_ _go_. He managed to catch himself, and then chased the laughing, flying fox-girl through the air while he ranted about how that was _not_ funny...until he finally realized that _hey_ , he was _flying_ , and this was _so_ _totally awesome, dude_!

It was enough for Sarah to think that she should give it a try herself, the audience with cameras behind her seeming like less and less of an issue...so when Wing-Woman offered her a hand up, she took it.

Magic wings meant you didn't have to learn the basics...or some of the more dare-devil techniques either, apparently. All it took was one, wordless look...and for a good several minutes, it became one big show-off game in the air.

Ladybug finally called it off when Chat crashed into a football net. To his credit, the move he'd used to end up in that position could not be topped...and he clearly knew it.

Sheepishly, the heroes had returned to the podium, and Swallowtail called his butterfly back home, leaving Sabrina behind, clueless to all that had transpired. The euphoric atmosphere dropped slightly as everyone realized that she would never remember how much fun she'd had just a few moments prior...but even though she couldn't recall what had happened, she smiled happily, and said she was pleased to know that the heroes had enjoyed it.

"Sorry, we got a little side-tracked for a moment," Ladybug apologized to the crowd, though for the most part they appeared to have enjoyed the whole thing, "Are there any more questions?"

"Ladybug, do you know Chat Noir's true identity now?"

Ladybug bit her lip before answering, "...we did share our identities with each other, yes."

Chat stepped up next to her, and grinned at the crowd, "It's a purrivilege My Lady has honored me with."

Ladybug made a show of rolling her eyes.

"Are you two dating now?"

"Hmm, _are_ we dating now, Milady?" Chat questioned with false innocence.

"Hmm, I wonder what your _girlfriend_ would think of that, Chat," Ladybug teased.

The entire crowd of reporters seemed to surge forward at that tidbit of information.

"I don't have a girlfriend... _yet_ ," Chat played along, winking at the main news camera.

Screams could be heard in the distance, from every direction. Everyone gave pause, but the noise died down soon after, and nothing happened after that.

"Um, I think you broke your fan-girls, Chat," Foxy stated.

"Wait, what?" Chat blinked, confused.

Jade and Blue both face-palmed. Bee stared at him in disbelief, and Foxy just laughed behind her hand.

"Er, moving on, are there any _other_ questions?" Ladybug asked.

"You mentioned a previous Guardian, where are they now?"

"You want to answer that one, Jade?" Ladybug smiled at her.

Turtle Jade frown pouted at her friend, but stepped up to the mic again anyway, "The previous Guardian is living a normal life now, no further comment."

She was _not_ going to call her mentor old on camera, no matter _how_ true it was.

"Why did they retire?"

"Do _you_ want to answer that one, Ladybug?" Turtle Jade quipped, smiling brightly.

Ladybug grimaced, but answered, "I believe it's safe to leave that to your imaginations..."

"Oh for the love of-they're _old_ , alright?" Honey Bee stole the mic.

The rest of the team gasped at her, horrified, or faking it for dramatic effect.

"Oh grow up," Bee rolled her eyes at them, "Now are we done here? I have _much_ better things I could be doing right now."

Turtle Jade groaned into her hands, shaking her head.

"How will you deal with Hawkmoth when you do find him?"

Before Ladybug could say anything, Chat Noir leaned over the mic, "If the man behind Hawkmoth really _is_ stupid enough to reveal himself to us now, we will gladly hand him over to the authorities. After how he has terrorized our home, Paris has it's right to justice."

Where the cameras couldn't see, Ladybug clutched his hand tightly in hers.

"We have a lot of questions for him and his allies," Chat continued, holding himself with all the heroic confidence Paris knew him for, "And we want the truth. We _deserve_ the truth, and we will do everything in our power to bring it to light. I promise."

Not a single pun. A clear message that he meant business.

"The Miraculous Seven stand together," Ladybug leaned in with her partner, throwing her arm over his shoulders in what appeared as a casual gesture of camaraderie, but everyone behind the podium knew it was so much more than that, "As we say here in Paris, "She is tossed by the waves, but does not sink." In the same way, no matter what tries to shake us, we will brave the storm, and in the end, good will _always_ win."

Her words brought warmth to their hearts, melting away the colder thoughts.

"Can we have a comment from each of you about your thoughts on your two newest members?"

Turtle Jade eyed her teammates warily.

"Well...it's like what Turtle Jade said earlier," Ladybug said, "I can't imagine anyone better suited for their roles, and I am honored to have them working with us."

"I suppose you could say that Turtle Jade is a real gem," Chat smirked, "And Swallowtail _gives us wings to fly_."

Ladybug, Blue, and Bee groaned. A snickering Jade knuckle-bumped him.

"I'm really excited to be working with them," Foxy took her turn, "Swallowtail is an absolute sweet-heart, and I have a feeling Turtle Jade is going to be a lot of fun to work with."

"Swallowtail needs to be less of a day-dreaming pansy, and Turtle Jade is _not_ my baby-sitter, don't believe a goddamn word she says, she's just an obnoxious, nosy meddler with a big mouth," Bee cut in front of Blue, "...but, whatever, I _guess_ they're okay."

"I love you too, Honey!" Jade hollered obnoxiously, from a safe distance away.

Ladybug and Chat Noir barely managed to stop a red-faced Bee from throwing her trompo at Jade, who already had a hand on her shield just to be safe. One could tell by her cheeky grin that she regretted nothing.

"...yeah, Turtle Jade can be obnoxious alright," Blue stated, snorting, "Though maybe _crazy_ would be the better word for it...but you can trust her when it really counts, you feel me?

"Swallowtail...er...they're cool, okay? Like, super nice, and...well, they're just getting into it right now, but they're learning _fast_ , like, _dude_. They _nailed_ it on the first try, bro. That was _awesome_!"

Foxy elbowed him, and he stopped.

"Did any of you know Turtle Jade before she received a Miraculous?"

Fortunately, they'd prepared for this one.

"Nope," Foxy answered easily, "The previous Guardian kept her a secret from all of us until after we recovered the Butterfly Miraculous, but thanks to a stark lack of Akumas we've had a lot of time to get to know her over the past few weeks."

Alya wasn't fond of lying either, but she was pretty d*mn good at it.

"Did any of you know each other outside of the mask before now?"

Foxy snorted, "No way, it would have been _ridiculously_ easy to discover each other's identities if we _had_ been close in real life. The previous Guardian chose each of us with great care, and they made sure we wouldn't out each other _that_ easily."

Not an exact quote, but Jade still had to work to keep a smug smirk off her face.

"What are the names of the other Miraculous spirits?"

The group hesitated.

"Since some of us may have mentioned their names as civilians, it is a security risk to mention their names now, sorry," Turtle Jade answered.

"How old are the Miraculouses? Where did they come from?"

If the reporter had expected a simple answer, they were sorely mistaken. A beaming Turtle Jade began speaking...and then did not stop. Wayzz had told her everything she'd wanted to know about the origins of the Miraculous, and now she had the opportunity to share the purpose behind the Miraculous in enthusiastic detail (while leaving out any of the more hazardous details, of course).

She somehow failed to notice the look of regret that crossed the one reporter's face, or how several members of the crowd began to exhibit an expression one would often find in the classroom. Her teammates behind her began to shift uncomfortably as minutes began to creep by, until Honey Bee finally snapped.

"Okay! You're done!" Bee grabbed her arm, dragging her away from the microphone.

Jade, startled, stammered, "B-but I wasn't done-"

"You're done," Bee glared in warning.

Jade pouted, looking to the others, but found only sheepish shrugs waiting for her.

"Well, I believe it's about time for us to wrap this up!" Ladybug took back the microphone, smiling brightly, "Any final questions?"

…

The team re-gathered at Chloe's later, watching the footage over, making observations, going over the finer details, and discussing cover stories if the press asked further questions in the future.

Toward the end of it, Sarah was pouting again.

"Sarah, sweet-heart, it _was_ getting a little long-winded," Alya patted her shoulder.

"...but it was _informative_..."

"I quite liked it," Wayzz claimed.

"You _would_ ," Plagg humphed.

"Sarah, if you were a teacher, you would put kids to sleep," Nino told her.

"Hey!" Sarah gaped at him.

"Now that I think about it, haven't you always had this "lecture mode"?" Adrien asked, fighting back a grin.

"She lectured you too?" Nino asked.

"You both probably needed it," Alya smirked.

" **Hey!** "

"Monsieur _Purr_ fect got lectured?" Marinette teased.

Adrien coughed into his fist and looked away, blushing.

"Dude, it's not like she called _you_ a pink elephant," Nino complained.

"No?" Duusu was confused, "She only claimed you were as obvious as a pink elephant dancing around in a tutu."

Nino turned a bit red.

"Duusu, you're the _best_ ," Sarah giggled, fighting hysterics.

Duusu hummed at the complement with a smile, missing the joke.

"Well, no, she never said _that_ to me..." Adrien admitted, again trying not to grin.

"Pray tell," Nino grumbled.

"I gave him a much longer lecture, Nino," Sarah supplied, "Something about not scaring _poor_ , _hardworking_ students to the point they throw writing supplies across the room, if I remember correctly."

Adrien snorted behind his hand.

"You're not gonna tell us, are you?" Alya chuckled.

"Nope, I like to keep my sessions highly confidential," Sarah joked.

"If you seriously become a Shrink, I'm moving out of Paris," Nino claimed.

Considering all the times he'd complained to her as if she _was_ his therapist, that was a _completely_ unfair statement.

"...I see, and how do you _feel_ about leaving Paris?" Sarah asked with false innocence.

"No."

"Please, Nino, this is a safe place," despite her soothing tone, Sarah couldn't hide the wide grin, "It's okay to be open with me."

"This is highly unprofessional, Sarah," Adrien gave her a serious look, "You should have your clip-board out first."

"Bro! This is treason!"

"Oh, you're right! How could I forget!" Sarah feigned horror, "I'm a disgrace to the uniform! This is absolutely dreadful!"

"Stop rambling like an idiot!" Chloe complained.

Sarah stuck her tongue out at her, and giggled, "Okay, so I can't be a teacher or a psychiatrist? What am I supposed to be then, oh Wise Nino?"

"How about something that _isn't_ going to mentally scar someone," he suggested with a bit of sass.

"Good luck with that," Plagg snarked.

"The fursonification of misfortune himself just said that. I'm pretty sure that means it's a lost cause," Sarah shrugged.

"So, you admit to being mentally scarring?" Marinette quirked an eyebrow.

"That depends, have I succeeded?" Sarah tossed back.

"Yes, yes you have Sarah. Many times," Marinette dead-panned.

" _Dinosaur_!" Adrien coughed into his hand.

"You have _no_ room to talk, kitty, don't even get me started," Marinette warned.

"I'm _just_ saying, in that one instance, you had time to _tell_ _me_ what you were doing…"

Marinette's mouth opened, then closed. Then her face flushed, and she ducked her head, realizing he had a point, "…okay, I'm sorry…but you probably would have tried to stop me…"

"…yeah, you know me too well, Bugaboo," he leaned over and gently kissed her temple.

Then a camera flashed.

"Alya!" Marinette protested.

"Reflex!" the blogger grinned, "Sorry, not sorry."

"Your reflexes are a blessing to this world, Alya," Sarah bowed respectfully.

"Finally, someone who can appreciate!" Alya feigned a dramatic huff, eyes filled with mirth.

" _I_ appreciate you," Nino hooked an arm around her, giving her a playfully adoring look.

"You'd better," Alya giggled, bumping noses with him.

Another camera flashed, this time aimed _at_ Alya.

"Thanks, send that to me, would you?" Alya smirked triumphantly.

Marinette pouted, her attempted revenge thwarted, "One day, Alya, one day…"

"One day you'll thank me?" Alya teased.

"Neh," Marinette playfully stuck her tongue out at her friend, then blinked at her phone, "Wow, is it that late already?"

"Ugh, we spent _hours_ going over this stupid video," Chloe groaned, "Are we done now?"  
"I think we've covered everything, yes," Marinette nodded, going over a mental check-list to be sure.

"Should I escort you home, princess," Adrien purred.

Marinette playfully contemplated her answer.

"Come on, guys, it's not _that_ late."

"Nino..." Sarah frowned.

"Nope. You can't use your old threats on me anymore," Nino told her, sounding quite sure of himself, "I'm not scared of you."

Right, her old threat had been to tell Alya he was crushing on Foxy, and now he knew that Alya _was_ Foxy...however...

"...baby-bird, are you _sure_ about that?" Sarah crossed her arms, raising a single brow.

Nino frowned, confused.

"Unless you want to tell everyone here _exactly_ what my threats were, and _why_ they worked on you..." Sarah waved her hand at their friends.

Slowly, horror dawned on his face, "...uh...th-that won't be necessary, uh..."

"Please go to bed at a reasonable time," Sarah smiled sweetly, "It _is_ a school night."

His head slumped forward in defeat, "Ugh, _fine_..."

"Okay, _what_?" Alya looked between them, confused.

"The day you make him spill is the day I lose my black-mail material, so...try not to do that too soon?" Sarah asked hopefully.

Alya frowned.

"We both know he'll spill eventually," Sarah shrugged.

"Hey!" Nino protested.

"And when he does spill, I hope you will recognize me for my evil genius," Sarah giggled.

" _Extremely_ evil..." Nino glared at her.

Chloe scoffed, but remained more interested in the magazine she'd pulled out than commenting on how much she could sympathize. Not that her choosing material over emotion-sharing would have surprised anyone. Well, the act of "sympathizing with someone" might have resulted in some potential neck-injuries, so it was probably better that she hadn't.

"Babe, just tell me," Alya groaned, frustrated with curiosity.

Nino made a show of zipping his mouth shut, locking a padlock at the corner of his mouth, and then throwing away the key.

Sarah rolled in her seat, laughing into her hands.

"I swear to God, Nino, I _will_ figure it out," Alya warned him.

" _Alya_ ," Sarah snickered, "Can't you wait until you're older and _married_ before you steal away my maternal power over my sort-of-son?"

Nino groaned, burying his head in his hands. Alya rolled her eyes, opting to let it go...for the time being.

"Careful, Sarah, remember the Karma," Trixx reminded her.

Sarah sighed, "Yeah, I know, it will catch up with me eventually..."

"Like, for example, when certain hypothetical children are taught to call you _Grandma_ Sarah?" Alya tossed out, measuring Sarah's reaction out of the corner of her eye with a confidant smirk.

Sarah gasped with exaggerated horror, "You _wouldn't_."

Marinette fell into a fit of giggles, lightly hitting Adrien's shoulder while he hid an amused chuckle of his own in his hand. Chloe hummed in amusement.

Nino snorted, "She probably would."

"...oh well, any of your kids will probably be too cute for me to _not_ spoil them like a grandmother," Sarah shrugged.

"Alright, guess we know who to call for baby-sitting then," Alya pretended take note on her phone.

"Babe, no, she'd hype them up on sugar before giving them back!" Nino argued.

"Oh come _on_ , _Adrien_ would be a bigger problem than _me_ ," Sarah defended.

"Hey!" Adrien protested.

"You know what, I think she's right, babe," Alya agreed, "He's probably going to take over the bakery at this rate. Never-ending cookies and cupcakes, Nino."

Chloe grimaced, but said nothing.

"Marinette would stop him!" Nino claimed.

Adrien pouted.

"Debatable," Alya shrugged.

"Guys..." Marinette warned with crossed arms, as she and Adrien still hadn't quite crossed the fine line to "dating" just yet (even though it was obvious they were going to, just as soon as one of them worked up the nerve to _say_ it), "...if what you are hypothetically insinuating _did_ in fact happen, I could _totally_ handle it, Alya."

Adrien looked torn between bliss and irritation, because while that had definitely _not_ been a "no" to the very thing of his dreams, she was still indirectly agreeing with the fact that he would be a poor baby-sitter.

"Sweetie, you know I love you," Alya told her, "But you're going to be barely managing with your own little kittens running around bouncing off furniture with the _bigger_ kitten."

Marinette's mouth opened, then shut, and instead of bothering with hypothetical disclaimers she gave Adrien an outright accusatory look, "No feet on the furniture."

Sarah did her best to stifle a diaphragm-shaking laugh, most likely popping a rib in the process.

"I'm innocent!" Adrien protested, hands up in a display of sincere surrender, "If anyone's teaching the children bad habits, it's Plagg! I swear!"

"Don't you _dare_ drag me into this nonsense," Plagg shot a glare at him, "And I'm a _supreme_ role model, thank you very much!"

Tikki giggled.

"She'd tell them embarrassing stories!" Nino pointed at Sarah, still trying to win the argument.

Sarah grinned widely, "Well, as a _grandmother_ , it's my _sworn_ duty to-"

"You see!" Nino waved his arms at Sarah, looking at Alya.

Sarah cackled.

"Babe, Trixx and Duusu would probably beat her to it," Alya gave him a serious look.

"Oh sh*t, you're right," Nino double face-palmed.

"Nino! Not in front of the children!" Adrien hissed at him.

Nino reflexively slapped a hand over his mouth, wide-eyed.

Everyone else in the room paused to look between them, while at the same time it seemed to dawn on the boys that they may have gotten a _little_ too into the discussion.

"...boys," Alya looked concerned, "You _do_ realize that there are no children here, right?"

Adrien and Nino flushed.  
"Y-yeah, pfft, I was just kitten!" Adrien grinned sheepishly.

"Y-yeah, totally!" Nino waved the thought away.

"...okay then..." Alya said slowly, then muttered, "...and here I thought _Marinette_ was the one with an over-active imagination..."

Marinette kept her mouth firmly shut...then Adrien whispered something in her ear with a cocky smirk.

"WHO TOLD YOU?!"

"Marinette?" Alya questioned.

Sarah wondered if she should attempt fleeing the room yet, or wait to see if he _had_ said what she suspected he had.

"Well? _Are_ you going to tell me?" Adrien teased.

Marinette was bright red, avoiding eye-contact, "...m-maybe later..."

"Careful, Marinette," Sarah warned, "I know that tone. He used the same one on me when he was _guessing_ that I knew Ladybug's identity."

"Says the sneak who made me think she went to an entirely different school!"

"Please, you _gave_ me that out," Sarah smirked, "Plagg wasn't laughing because I accidentally outed myself, he was laughing because you _confused_ _yourself_."

Plagg chortled at the memory.

"Wait a minute...he knew you knew before I told him?" Marinette flushed a little.

"Actually...so did Alya and Nino," Sarah admitted, cringing a little, "I slipped up and I needed a way to explain how I knew way too much. Adrien figured it out after Super Strong, because he thought you recognized me due to the mention of Nooroo, and _not_ because you recognized the suit you hand-made."

Adrien face-palmed, Nino and Alya laughed.

"She made the-, you were that-, ugh!," a frustrated Chloe flopped back, flinging her arms out and glaring at the ceiling, "Nobody tells me _anything_!"

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you about it later, Chloe," Sarah grimaced.

"You'd _better_."

"Ugh, you _knew_..." Marinette groaned into her hands.

"I would have told you, Bugaboo, but I didn't want to accidentally clue you in to who I was, so I had to play dumb," Adrien explained.

" _So_ glad that's over, you guys were giving me gray hair..." Sarah sighed in relief.

"What, you don't miss juggling us?" Alya teased.

"Too many close shaves. I'm happy that now all I have deal with is making sure _other_ people don't figure out who you are."

"Not worried they'll find out who _you_ are?" Nino asked.

"Please, I'm turtally inconspicuous," Sarah snorted, "Everyone thinks I'm a failed Ladybug that got demoted to baby-sitting duty, and I don't have an _insanely_ obnoxious record of being mysteriously unaccountable when the heroes appear."

"Don't let that make you complacent," Trixx warned.

"I know," Sarah nodded in acknowledgement, "I'll keep being careful."

"Speaking of being careful, it's a little nerve-wrecking to think you'll be out of the country for Christmas Break," Marinette sighed.

"Yeah, I know, but cool as my parents were about letting me stay here for school, I don't think they'd handle _this_ quite as well, so there's not much I can do about it, but I _will_ be careful," Sarah promised, "I've talked with Sabrina about checking in with her periodically so you'll know if anything happens, and I'm planning to leave Wayzz with Master Fu."

She glanced at the Kwami, who said nothing, "There's the risk I'd expose myself by using the Miraculous if a situation _did_ arise, and I don't want to risk it."

Marinette didn't seem to approve.

"Look, I should be fine, really," Sarah insisted, "Pollen has me training harder than ever, Chloe said she would arrange something for me at the airport, and once I make it home, it's not a joke to say I have the home advantage. If you think _I'm_ a busy-body you should visit my town sometime. Over there you have to be _super_ sneaky to keep any secrets, and we tend to look out for one another. If someone saw a creep coming after me...let's just say there's plenty of people around who know how to throw a good solid punch, and I doubt the bad guys would anticipate that."

" _Legion_ _of_ _Doom_ ," Nino huffed.

"Nino, _no_ ," Sarah groaned.

"Well it's better than _Nutcase Ninjas_ ," he retorted.

" _Anyway_ , I doubt they'd be desperate enough to send the whole group after me, and I'll make sure I'm ready for them if they _do_ try something," Sarah ignored him, "I've already been making excuses like crazy. I can't skip Christmas."

"My father is sending your parents a personal invitation for our New Years Party," Chloe threw out, still paging through her magazine, "I can't imagine them turning _that_ down. I mean, he's inviting _everyone_ from our school, but they should be _honored_ to come. I tried to tell him it would be totally lame to invite their families too, but whatever."

Pollen gave Chloe an unimpressed look, but said nothing.

"Thank you, Chloe," Sarah smiled, choosing not to call the bluff.

"And I _suppose_ Marinette can bring Master Fu along, if she's still pretending he's a family friend," Chloe waved off.

"Actually..." Adrien looked at Marinette, who shared a small laugh with him.

"Dude, did they adopt Master Fu too?" Nino laughed.

"They keep inviting him to dinner," Marinette explained sheepishly, "I came home from school one day, and he'd already come clean with them. They were having a surprisingly intense discussion about tea, and they barely even noticed I was there."

"And they were still at it when I got there," Adrien chuckled.

"I'm not surprised. The man is _obsessed_ with the art of Green Tea," Sarah snorted lightly, shaking her head.

"How are your studies coming along?" Marinette smiled cheekily.

"Ugh," Sarah groaned.

"She is making substantial progress," Wayzz commented.

"I see water bubbles in my dreams now," Sarah pouted, "I had a nightmare they got angry and started yelling at me!"

…

The next day was interesting, as the entire class was buzzing about the press conference. Sarah had thought her prior publicity stunts had been mortifying enough, but somehow her classmates' comments on Turtle Jade managed to blindside her anyway. For most of the day, she pretended to be tired so she could bury her face in her arms.

Apparently the past 15 months of using herself as a distraction had resulted in way too many attention-grabbing habits, she was now beginning to realize, and regret.

When asked, she stealthily crossed her fingers and "admitted" that the "Guardian" had been the one to briefly place the Ladybug Miraculous in her hands, but claimed that they were super stealthy and she had never actually seen them at work. Sharing her "opinion" on the newest heroes was an emotional challenge, since the urge to cringe at her own "objective" view of herself was painfully persistent, but she liked to think she did an excellent job sticking to the act.

She just hoped her fellow heroes would forget to tease her about her "opinions" later.

…

It was truly amazing, when they thought about it. For the first time in a _very_ long time...all of the seven Miraculouses were being wielded at the same time, and working together in harmony for the good of mankind. It was something they could all have pride in, despite the circumstances.

As promised, Swallowtail used his powers to help others, slowly gaining the trust and cooperation of the people of Paris. The Miraculous heroes _all_ devoted their time and energy to support the city, hoping that whenever evil reared its ugly head, Paris would have their back.

And a wise move it was. Champions were so much easier to come by when people were eager to become heroes themselves, even if they wouldn't remember it afterwards.

The Miraculous Seven would need every advantage, for the enemy was careful, crafty when it came for them again. What happened when the enemy made their next move, however, is another story.

The End.

* * *

MIRACULOUS TEAM ASSEMBLED!

...what...have I done? o.o

To be continued in: The Consequences of Meddling (yet to be posted...)

Because, clearly, I cannot stop until you meet Cupcake: a very important character that gets two whole paragraphs to herself, and then a rant about why she should totally be canon. And you cannot get to Cupcake until I drag us through several layers of angst and insanity. Yup. But Cupcake is worth it. Cupcakes are ALWAYS worth it, right?

Except when they aren't, but let's pretend that's not an issue here...hopefully you aren't deathly allergic to screaming and crying into pillows and throttling your Internet-accessing devices because of all the clichés, random crack, and angst. It's basically like the first story, only more angsty because we have to deal with Papa Agreste and the "Legion of Doom"...and, yeah, you'll probably see everything coming from a mile away despite my best efforts, but if you don't, I'm sorry. I was compelled. I could not stop myself. _

Maybe save yourself and skip to the last chapter, so you get to Cupcake with a lot less heartache…and a lot less understanding as to what the h*ll happened over the course of 10+ long chapters...curiosity killed the cat, dude. I don't know if satisfaction will bring you back. DON'T YOU DARE DIE AND STAY DEAD ON ME, THAT IS NOT OKAY! Just ask yourself...did you really like this first story? Could it POSSIBLY be worth it to read the sequel? If the answer is yes, then please, proceed to read the next story (once I finish writing and start posting it...), and give me your assessment afterwards, dead or alive, lol.

Sequel info aside...

Simon/Jacques Grimault being the Butterfly? I TOTALLY BELIEVE IT SHOULD HAPPEN IN CANON DON'T GET ME STARTED! HOW ARE PEOPLE MISSING THIS?! ARG!

Seriously, check that boy out! He's got the whole "I must wear obnoxiously colorful clothes that blind people because it looks pretty!" thing, the sweet "I don't like to control people with my hypnotism" personality, and...did you SEE the BUTTERFLY SLEEVES on his Akuma costume?! AND HIS SHIRT IS BRIGHT FREAKING MAGENTA, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!

I have an entire Tumblr post dedicated to this theory. You can check it out here: post/156078361856/the-future-butterfly  
And I ranted a little more here: post/156292102976/the-miraculous-seven

Please love my Caterpillar Son...why does no one else love him...? T^T

And yes, I borrowed the "Turtle Jade" name...because do you really expect me to call the turtle hero, whoever they are, "Turtle Green"? (And don't get me started on "Carapace" again...) Peacock Blue is obnoxious enough, thank you very much! Besides...you know I can't resist the opportunity for extra puns. ;P (Green puns are going to happen regardless of the name, lol!)

AND THIS IS THE LONGEST FREAKING CHAPTER YET! I WENT OVER 14,000 WORDS, NOOOOOOO! ToT (It was the press conference, I wasn't expecting to focus on it so much! o) Well...hopefully you don't mind too awfully much, since it's sort of the wrap-up chapter, right?

Oh, and it's probably obvious to most of you, but the "mysterious" thing Adrien said to Marinette was: "So, have you named our three hypothetical children yet?"

Will she eventually find out that Sarah was the one that told him? Probably. XD

* * *

Yup, this was the last chapter...and the sequel will probably take a while to finish, it's still only half-way done...hopefully the wait will be worth it, lol!

THANK YOU EVERYONE WHO HAS READ THIS MONSTROSITY, YOU ROCK! T^T


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